Hello My Old Heart
by myPARABATAIisbetterthanyours
Summary: In the alternate reality where Anthony Stark is Antonia Stark, Steve Rogers finds himself loving her. What started with a harmless date to Toni's favorite place turned into more. So much more. And without Nat it wouldn't have happened at all really. Following the lives of two Avengers as they grow closer together alongside their constant companions. Please R&R!
1. The Courting of Toni Stark

_First time Avenger's fic. This is Stoni hardcore so scat if you don't ship it. (Kidding, cuz even if you don't you should read this.) I love getting feedback so R&R for me please. Can't wait to hear whatcha think. Also check out my other fics please please please._

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Pepper had been talking now for a long time, a really long time. Nat had been patient, waiting her turn to say something or maybe point out a dress but Toni was not patient. Toni was generally an impatient person and had a hard time listening to long conversations when she had better things she could be doing. Like thinking about last night. Last night. Last. Night.

STSTSTSTST

"Alright Jarvis, I want honesty- brutal honesty- tell me what you think of the redesign. How does it look?" Toni asked her computer-generated companion.

"In my brutal honest opinion I'd say it'd look better in red, white and blue but if you want silver and curves then that's fine too." A distinctly male and American voice replied. Toni spun around to discover Steve Rogers sitting on a toolbox in the shop. Toni clicked her tongue.

"I'm pretty sure you just described War Machine, which I am not." Toni shot back, examining the super soldier's expression; half amusement, half confusion.

"Don't you mean Iron Patriot?" Steve replied. Toni laughed, a quiet chuckle to herself that lit up her face.

"I prefer War Machine. It has a more patriotic ring to it, don't you think?" She asked coolly, returning to the modified Ironman suit. Steve bit his lip, resisting the urge to argue. He knew how Toni was, especially with the whole patriotism thing. She would set the bait, hook Steve and then reel him in- cooking him for dinner later. Steve was learning now. Learning that it was easier if he just ignored the sly comments and attempts to get a rise out of him. Toni was good though and sometimes made it really hard.

Instead Steve focused on the good in Toni. The way her laugh could ignite the whole room or her smile was like the sun; always glowing when it shone. And even while she was working, slightly sweaty from the shop's heat and the heavy labor, her hair always managed to look amazing. Like right now for example. Her long curly mass of dark brown hair was pinned up into a messy bun, rolled onto the back of her head and bobby-pinned into place. Steve could appreciate that, the way she looked good under any circumstances. Like how even after everything that happened in New York last year- even with her going through a _space portal_- she still ended up looking amazing afterwards.

Steve stopped before his stomach would explode, the constant dwelling on her looks was going to drive him insane. Also, it just occurred to him, why was he remembering New York? An incident that had really pulled their relationship taught. And a time when Steve did not appreciate Toni's good looks or thinly dispersed moments of kindness.

"Why change the suit?" He asked, shocking himself out of more thoughts of Toni. "Red and gold always looked really good on you." He said, flushing as he realized how that sounded out loud. Toni glanced over her shoulder at Steve, a moment where she'd dropped her façade of taunts and jokes, and looked like Toni- the Toni that Steve appreciated so very much. She returned her gaze to the suit and patted its now curvy side.

"It'll still be red and gold. It just needs a paint job. And as for the curve I figured ever since I kind of outted myself on public television that Iron_man_ is technically Iron_woman_ it's a safe bet that I can change the suit. It actually drops twenty pounds from the suit. Weight is valuable on machinery like this and cutting that out really helps." She said. Steve nodded, hoping that he looked like he was following.

"If I may Miss." A pleasantly British voice said. Jarvis's melodic, feminine vocals split the two's shared split-second gaze. Toni turned back to the suit and waved the virtual advisor off.

"Get on with it Jarvis." Toni demanded. Jarvis cleared her throat, which Steve found odd for a virtual being.

"Well Miss, the newly added curves for breasts do cause a problem for structural capacity. One good blow to the chest and it would break your sternum. Not that you have a sternum anymore, Miss, but it could still kill you or cause serious injuries." Steve thought, after hearing that short speech, that the once pleasant voice now held an aura of horror. Toni pursed her lips and crossed her arms.

"You're probably right J." Toni conceded.

"Miss, I am a computer-generated consciousness. I am right ninety-six percent of the time. The other four percent accounts for human emotions which are unpredictable and rash." She said sweetly, but it was sickly sweet, uninviting now with the image of Toni's chest being caved in. Steve realized he was blushing a few seconds later, and he was glad Toni didn't turn around to see his pink stained cheeks. Instead Toni continued working, removing the chest plate and setting to work on a modified one. She started spewing science facts, dropping words that Steve didn't understand, to explain away her mistake. Within ten minutes Toni had forced scotch into both their hands and intermittently throughout the construction Toni would have Steve hand her her glass.

And so the night went on, Steve listening till he couldn't listen anymore. Toni talking until she couldn't talk anymore and then finally the breastplate was done. And when Steve checked his watch he discovered that the two had stayed up late. Later than Steve was actually used to; four a.m. Plus, seeing as it was summer, the sun would be up in a couple of hours which really left Steve no time to sleep and plenty of time to dwell on Toni's talking. Toni's voice. Toni's laugh. He really had to stop.

And that left him with one person to turn to.

STSTSTSTST

Natasha woke up to the quiet sound of knocking on her door. In a groggy attempt at a waking up she checked her clock. She didn't really process the actual time but it did register that it was ungodly early.

"Nat." Called a voice. "Nat are you awake?" And then her door cracked open and Steve's head popped in. Nat pushed a hand through her messy red hair, catching on the knots caused by sleep. She really wished she could say no but Steve sounded distressed and knowing him if she didn't help him now then they'd all being hearing about it for a good long time to come.

"Mmm hmm." She mumbled putting on her best 'I'm-not-actually-pissed-at-you' face. Steve looked apologetic as he entered and sat down on the floor by her head.

"Sorry." He disclosed quickly, grabbing hold of his toes as he sat with crossed legs. "Look I have a problem." He told her. Nat looked at his face, examining it carefully. Girl problems. Definitely girl problems. But which girl? Nat's brain kicked in to overdrive, thinking loudly over Steve's unnecessary introductory explanation. It obviously wasn't herself, Steve trusted her too much as a friend. Not Pepper, she was far too modern and sweet-with-an-edge. Naturally Peggy Carter was too old at ninety-something. Out of their group that narrowed it down to Toni and Jarvis and unless Steve was pulling a 'Her' on Nat then that left Toni. Nat chewed her lip.

"Why Toni?" She interrupted. Steve looked at her.

"Wha-"

"You know me better than to ask that. Why Toni? Not because she's the only available one right? Because if that's the reason then I am getting you out of the tower and we are going date-hunting." She stated firmly. Steve shook his head.

"No. Not that... I guess I've just grown... enamored with her." He replied, wiggling his socked toes which were being gripped by white-knuckled hands. "And I tried not to like her. I kept telling myself 'think of the team, think of the team' but it didn't work." Natasha sighed. The Steve she was looking at now was not the Steve from even a few months ago. This Steve was weary, not broken but weary, and solemn. Sunken eyes and dark bags betrayed the fact that this man in front of her was probably not in his best state of mind. She grumbled something and opened her mouth to speak, mentally preparing herself for the advice she was about to give.

"Well this _is _Toni, so obviously no declarations of love. You could probably just ask her to dinner, but like I said; this is Toni, so make sure it's expensive. And if you're going to get her flowers don't get her flowers you've thought about too much or too little. No cards with them, no candy, just flowers." Nat told the famous Captain America. "You better get some sleep, try and eradicate those bags." She said, pointing with her pinky to underneath her eye. Steve nodded, mouthed a quiet thank you and left the room with a 'Sorry again.'

STSTSTSTST

Steve was the first up, as per usual with the Avengers. He was seated at the bar in the middle of the adjacent dining room, separated from the kitchen by two potted plants. It was surprisingly Clint that appeared on the living floor next. He looked barely awake, driven by the need for food. His hair looked like a shorter version of Marie Antoinette's styles. Steve noted the bags present under his eyes also. It appeared their silent guardian was sleeping fitfully.

Clint entered the kitchen, drawing Steve's gaze off the book on the table in front of him and up to the hero searching for food. Clint slammed the cabinet door shut.

"Alright, where are the goddamned poptarts?!" He growled. Suddenly Thor was there, startling Steve with his tendencies toward sneaking.

"I have taken the tarts that pop friend Clint. Sif and I have discovered their glory and have put them on lockdown. We will contact you when we are in need of more." Thor said, padding over to the fridge which he pulled open and proceeded to bury his head in. Clint grumbled what sounded like some carefully chosen curse words at Thor and then went back to his search for breakfast.

"So this is an odd question but I need a nice place to eat here in New York. Like really nice." Steve piped up with.

Without removing his head from the fridge, Thor said, "The First Teriyaki just down the street is very a high quality establishment. They serve the roasted and glazed flesh of cattle and poultry." Clint just glanced at him, while searching for a clean bowl to pour his cereal in.

"You are asking completely the wrong people Steve. My idea of a nice restaurant is a sit-down McDonalds." Clint replied.

"Try Masa, it's a very nice Japanese place downtown. It's Toni's favorite place to eat." Someone said. Steve spun around to find Pepper standing before them in a white powersuit. Steve opened his mouth to ask how she knew when she continued. "It was an educated guess Steve, and I'm glad that I'm right or that would have been a very awkward moment. It's expensive but if you want to make a good impression it's her favorite place. You know, I'm glad it's you taking an interest in her." Pepper stated kindly. Behind him he definitely felt the looks of both Clint and Thor.

"Speaking of, where is our genius, billionaire, playboy philanthropist?" Clint butted in, adding the last bit in a teasingly smooth voice. Pepper looked over at Hawkeye.

"Yes, actually, where is Toni? I came early to talk business with her." Pepper said. Steve was surprised he knew the answer. He'd gone down to the training room on the occasional morning that he needed to hit something really hard and found Toni was always there. It appeared to be her morning routine.

"I'll go get her." Steve said, standing and going to the elevator.

"Isn't it cute?" Pepper mumbled as the elevator doors closed. Clint looked up, spoon in mouth and shrugged. Thor continued to scrounge the fridge, ignoring Virginia altogether.

STSTSTSTST

Toni had grown to learn that her favorite routine was waking up every morning and punching the shit out of a suspended sand bag. Not only did it allow Toni to rid herself of stress or anger but it was just a fun thing to do, she'd learned. She stopped with one hand slamming into the bag when she heard the sliding doors open. Steve walked in, she could tell by the way he cleared his throat and shifted his weight before talking that in deed it was the super soldier behind her. She wondered why she'd know that.

"Pepper's looking for you." Steve said. Toni growled something under her breath and turned around, unwinding the wraps around her hands.

"You look like you got something else to say there Capsicle." She grumbled, leaning back on the weight rack. Steve bit his lip slightly, trying to ignore the nickname that was an odd mix of endearing and so annoying.

"Yeah, actually. Pepper was just telling us of a place downtown called Masa and I was thinking of going tonight. I thought it'd be easier if I went with you, because she said it's your favorite and, uh, you could be my guide." Steve said, holding his left elbow and he wrapped his left hand tightly around the back of his neck. Toni blinked, caught off guard.

"Um. Yeah, sure." She mumbled, putting her stuff in her gym bag.

"Yeah alright, should I just meet you in the lobby at, uh seven?" Steve asked, lowering his hand from his neck.

"Well if all goes according to plan today then I should be done at six." She replied, picking up her bag and making for the door. Steve fell in next to her.

"That also sounds good." He said.

STSTSTSTST

Toni was intercepted by Nat and Pepper in her shop. At first Toni was concerned that it was about business things, which she actively tried to avoid, but was surprised by Pepper's greeting.

"You need a new dress." The CEO stated. Toni blinked.

"What?"

"You need a new dress Toni. I've seen what your closet is full of and you cannot wear a cocktail dress or a t-shirt to Masa with Steve." She said, pulling at the t-shirt-over-long-sleeve ensemble that Toni was currently sporting.

"Wha-"

"Steve came to me last night with questions and Pepper gave him the idea for the restaurant. We both know Steve asked you to dinner, now the important part is you. This _is_ Steve we're talking about so something minimalist but fancy. Nothing crazy modern because... Steve." Nat butted in with. Pepper nodded in approval but Toni stared at them with blank eyes. Nat sighed and continued. "Toni, we're talking about Steve. He's going to show up in a tux with a dozen roses."

"Probably two dozen." Pepper correct, leaning closer to Nat who simply ignored the comment.

"So what's going to happen now is we're going to get you in one of those five convertibles and we're going to drive to all the stores you know and we're going to find five perfect dresses, one for each point of the star on Steve's chest." Nat growled, there was a certain ferocity in her voice that kept Toni from objecting. Pepper just smiled as she turned Toni around and went to get her something presentable to wear outside. Nat watched them go.

She'd never really had anyone to treat like this, no one to force on a shopping spree. She'd always been Black Widow and now here was Toni, who Nat found herself oddly intrigued at seeing a more feminine side of. She realized, almost bitterly, she'd never had a 'Get in losers, we're going shopping' moment.

She could feel her inner fairy-godmother tapping at its glass cage.

So when Toni returned garbed in skinny jeans, a skin tight Pink Floyd t-shirt and an army green jacket Nat grinned. She grinned at the thought of going shopping with Toni and Pepper. Toni, on the other hand, spent the ride in silence, blowing strands of her hair up and down as entertainment. Nat wondered why she wasn't enjoying this. It was, after all, some good relaxing time after everything that had happened recently.

They made it, granted with some difficulty concerning traffic and a Toni Stark sighting, to the 5th avenue Louis Vuitton. It took little to no time at all for Nat and Pepper to locate seven dresses that they thought looked good on Toni.

"This one's really weird Pepper." Toni called from behind the curtain. Pepper ignored her, checking her phone.

"That's what you said about the last two Toni. You've only tried on three now. Work with us here." Pepper called back. Toni huffed angrily and exited the curtain-concealed circle. The dress was long and lavender with lavender lace trailing down from the shoulder to the knee. Toni squirmed around in it but Pepper grinned, poking Nat's shoulder.

"Yeah, yeah. Consider that one the first of the five." Nat instructed, returning to _Lolita_. Toni hobbled back to the stall and tried on the next one. Pepper and Nat ignored the grunts as Toni attempted to put on a dress by herself. Then the next one was on and she was standing before them again. It was a simplistic long slip dress, red with gold slits. Pepper practically squealed, and then looked like she was about to tackle Nat in a fit of excitement.

"It's like it was designed for her!" Pepper cried, pulling the book from Nat's hands. "It's absolutely perfect!" Nat nodded in approval.

"Yeah, I like that one the best too. But still, you've got three more to go. Book Pepper." She said, which was the most excitement they'd seen from her all day. Toni grumbled something under her breath.

"Why can't we just toss those other three in the pile and call it good. I'll probably never wear these anyways." Toni growled. Pepper tsk-tsked her.

"You will if we say so." Toni groaned and spun on her heel back towards the curtains. The next three were the final three, exterminating the need for another store as Nat and Pepper both agreed that they looked great on Toni, which made Toni breathe a sigh of relief.

The ride back was rambunctious, with the convertible's stereo turned up loud to _Titanium_ as the three sang along. It seemed that even with Toni being Toni the two were able to build up even a little excitement for that evening.

STSTSTSTST

Steve found himself fidgeting slightly as he sat across from Toni. He didn't mean to be, he'd meant to be impressive and Captain America-y. Instead he was shifting his weight from side to side in his chair, wishing that the waiter would show already and relieve some of the tension. And every time the two meet eyes Steve would see her hair. The way it cascaded down over her shoulders in thick dark brown locks. And the little crystal earrings suspended from her ear lobes. She'd somehow found a dress that was so Ironman it was unbelievable and then she added the earrings and the red, gold and silver made her look so gorgeous. He felt so awkward sitting there. Something had to be done about it.

"I'll be right back." He muttered and then bolted for the bathroom. Relief washed over him. _Man with a Plan does it again_. Steve thought. He was glad to find the bathrooms empty, perfect for a pep-talk.

Toni smiled as the waiter walked over.

"Can I get you anything to drink miss?" He asked.

"The strongest sake you've got." She groaned. He nodded and disappeared. _Alright Toni, it's all you. You've got to be Toni and live to fight another day. Captain America can't break you so easily. Come on Toni, this is easy. This is just one evening with Steve. Charisma got you here, charisma can get you out._ She told herself.

_What are you doing Steve? It's a dinner date not a dinner-don't-talk-to-her! Come on Steve, you can do better. You are _the_ Captain America... oof, I think that makes it worse in this scenario. Just talk to her. One word. That's all you need. Like last night in the shop, it should be easy like that. Get her started on science and then you don't even have to do any talking!_

_ Get him started on America and you don't have to do _any_ of the talking! Yikes, I wonder if that's why he finds me impolite. Just don't say anything like that and you're fine Toni. And don't bring up anything stupid like World War Two or ice. Ice is definitely not a good subject._ Suddenly Steve was there, reclaiming his chair. Toni panicked, as her pep-talk was still in flight.

"I'm thirsty, are you thirsty? I am and ice water would be nice." She stammered. Steve gave her a confused smile. _Goddamn. _"I ordered Sake." She mumbled, blushing slightly as she straightened the napkin in her lap. "I know you don't really drink but I thought you could have at least a glass with me." Steve looked at her.

"Uh yeah, sure. It's not that I don't drink though, it's more that it can't get me drunk so I don't _self-pity_ drink anymore." He replied. She nodded.

"If I was unable to get drunk then I would be heartbroken." She told him. He shrugged.

"I've grown used to it."

"Mark my words Super Soldier, I will figure out a way to get you drunk." She promised. Steve grinned.

"Okay." And suddenly the sake was in front of them and they were laughing and smiling and Toni was cracking jokes and laughing at Steve trying to crack jokes. And Steve couldn't help but think that it hadn't, in fact, been a mistake asking Toni to dinner. That Nat was right, in the end, because he was having a good time and Toni was too. That was what really made him happy that night, that one idea; Toni was happy too.


	2. Avengers Accepting

_Tell your friends! Tell your mothers and brothers and sisters and fathers! Chapter 2 is here so fear no more! Do R&R and spread the word about this fic! I hope you can guess what's coming next. I'll give you a hint at the end..._

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The images flashed through her mind- the wormhole and the clouds disappearing into black. She could see the huge ship launching more of its army at her, and the suit giving up the ghost. Falling, letting the zero gravity pull her back towards the hole which she knew she would never make. The darkness, no light. Fear. And the Chitauri whale, blasting through it not knowing how much longer the suit would hold out.

Toni's sleeping mind panicked, her nails digging deeper into her palms and letting blood ooze out. She shot forward, awoken by the pain, breath heavy and sweat soaking her brow. She looked around, her room was dark and the clouds blocked stars that night. Toni pushed the covers back and swung her legs out of bed. She pushed her hands through her hair, resting her elbows on her knees. She felt the sting of tears in her eyes so she blinked them back, standing up.

The Avenger's tower was quiet, its occupants asleep in their respective beds and nests. Toni padded her way to the elevator, wiping her brow with shaking hands. _Steve's room. Steve. Where's Steve?_ Her mind told her as the elevator dinged and then opened. And then she was there, standing in front of the super soldier's door hoping that she wouldn't upset him by barging in at two in the morning.

Carefully Toni pushed the door to his room open and walked in. It was dark in the room, but Steve's bed was silhouetted, revealing that it was empty. Toni fell back against the wall, a shaking hand covering her forehead as she tried to calm down. _Breathe Toni, think. Think about where Steve would be_. She thought, her mind coaxing her off a mental ledge.

Toni knew Steve now, she knew that if he wasn't sleeping he'd be beating away his worries. She was, in fact, right. Steve was in the training room, one bag already downed and spilling sand out of a whole. His brow was furrowed in concentration and he was hitting hard enough that Toni feared he would break another bag. Toni walked in, letting the sound of the sliding doors shock Steve out of his late night therapy session. He looked up. She stood in the doorway.

"I couldn't sleep." He said, pointing to the punching bag with his thumb. Toni nodded.

"Neither could I." She replied. He bit his lip and walked over to her, pulling her into a hug. Her arms slid around him as she tried not to cry or shake. Steve sighed as she buried her face in his shoulder. He found his hand on her head, pulling her closer and closing his eyes. Something inside him feared that these demons would plague them for a long time. Something else inside him hoped that they could share the demons.

STSTSTSTST

Toni was awoken by the sounds of Natasha's harsh Russian echoing through the door followed by pounding. Toni groaned, rubbing an eye and realizing that for the first time in a long time she'd slept well. Then she realized that Steve's arm was draped around her and she remembered last night; going down to the training room after a particularly horrible set of nightmares.

"Get up Steve." Nat called from outside. "Clint's making breakfast and you know the rules about meals." Toni heard a groan and then Steve pushed himself forward, his arm rising away from her. He looked over to discover Toni was lying in his bed and he froze.

"Am I forgetting something really important about last night?" He asked. Toni grinned and shook her head.

"Not much." She said, not wanting to bring up the panic attack she'd had before going to find him. Steve bit his lip and looked down at her. "Gonna leave a girl in your bed and not kiss her?" Toni demanded. Steve cracked a nervous grin and then pecked her on the lips, which left Toni slightly disappointed. Instead, she smiled and pushed herself forward, turning to let her lips brush past Steve's. She could feel his breath catch as she did so, making her grin as she stood.

Steve watched her stand and straighten her tank top. He swung his feet to the floor and mentally coaxed himself to stand, to follow Toni out the door. To stay optimistic that today was going to be good.

"Come on Capsicle, Birdbrain's making food... God forbid it have eggs in it." She mumbled, reaching out to pull him off the bed.

It had been relatively unofficial now for three weeks, Toni insisting that telling the others would be touchy, but Steve felt like last night was... different. Steve hadn't, in fact, known that Toni was having panic attacks and she hadn't known of his issues with sleeping; how every night the super soldier would be up and beating a new bag to death. But now both knew of the other's mental state and, Steve realized, she'd slept well in his arms last night.

Steve hesitantly slid his hand into hers, letting her help him up. He didn't expect it when Toni kept pulling and ended up practically throwing Steve at herself. Cap and she were suddenly together, Steve accidentally pinning her to stabilize them.

"You okay?" He breathed. Toni grinned, nodding slightly, and then eased her lips over his. She was warm- her lips were warm- and then an arm was around Steve's waist, pulling him closer. Oddly, he found himself melting into the kiss, letting Toni wash over him. The moment was abruptly ended by another bang on the door and then it swung open to reveal Nat _and _Clint.

"Oh whoa." Clint breathed. Nat grumbled something in Russian and then threw her hands on her hips, giving Clint a look. "Wow, I was not expecting that."

"I told you they're a thing." Nat barked. Steve realized he'd pushed himself off Toni, but it had been too late and the other two Avengers had seen them.

"I've got to go revise the menu for this morning." Clint said, backing away from the situation. Natasha just kept her gaze fixed menacingly on Steve. Toni watched the two, wondering which one would spontaneously combust first. (She'd liked to have believed that the super soldier could have withstood the Black Widow's gaze but it was unlikely.)

Steve suddenly felt how warm his cheeks really were, flushed red in color and burning hotly. Nat pursed her lips and then spun around, making way down the hall for the elevator. Toni looked over at Steve and burst out laughing. He watched her incredulously. She was doubled over, propping herself up off her knees as she practically howled. Steve's eyes were wide.

"I thought you said you wanted to keep it quiet?!" He shouted, hands out in front of himself. Toni looked up, cheeks red and eyes watery.

"Your face Steve..." She took a breath. "Oh my God your face. I wish you could have seen it. Oh my God." She cackled. Steve blinked.

"What are you...? What?" He replied blankly. Toni shook her head.

"Nothing, nothing. The moment's over. Come on." She said, taking his hand and leading him out the door.

As they exited the elevator the entire room fell silent. Thor, Clint, Nat, Bruce, and Pepper all stood before the two in silence. It was Saturday and Saturday was their special breakfast day, of which the requirements stated that if you are in or are affiliated with the Avenger's Team then you have to show your face. Judging by the looks on everyone's faces as Toni and Steve walked in, five feet apart from each other, Clint had come running in the room screaming about what he'd seen. Toni made a mental note to trash the idiot's nest later.

"So! When beeth the larval human arriving?!" Thor shouted. Steve shot a glance of terror at Toni and then collected himself.

"What? No. It's not like that." Steve said. Toni sighed, walked over to the wrap-around couch in front of the TV and plopped down on it. Thor grinned at Steve, an odd and almost creepy smile.

"Of course not friend Rogers!" Thor said, winking. It seemed the God had picked upon insinuations.

"There's no baby Thor. I'm not pregnant, nor do I plan on being. Is it that big of a deal? I mean really!" Toni cried, throwing her arms into the air. Steve slinked over to one of the barstools in an attempt to stay out of the situation. "Are we having breakfast or not?" She huffed. Clint came swinging out of the kitchen, a grin on his face.

"Pancakes!" He sang. Toni practically leapt up, it appeared that out of the entire group Clint could make the best pancakes and Toni appreciated that. Pepper cleared her throat at the rest of the group and they all sat down at the bar island.

Toni realized that she'd automatically seated herself next to Steve and the others had filled the bar, leaving her no room to switch places. Suddenly there was a plate in front of her and it had a heart pancake on it. She looked up, glaring daggers at Clint. Nat looked over at her plate, craning her neck to see and then she was up, grabbing Clint by the back of his shirt to drag him out. Toni slid the plate away from her, passing it on to Steve, and stood.

"Not hungry." She growled. Steve stared at the heart and panicked.

"Neither am I." He reciprocated, following her out.

Steve caught the elevator with her which just made her angrier. He looked down at her, double-taking.

"What?" There was no reply. "What? What did I do now?!" He cried.

"They'll think we went off to have sex or something! God Steve, how hard is it to pick up on those little details?!" She shouted back. Steve's face fell slightly.

"Oh."

"Oh my ass buddy! Clint is so dead. So very dead. Jarvis, the balcony please." She said.

"Yes miss." Jarvis replied.

"What are you doing?" Steve asked, starting to worry.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Toni growled.

"Why are we going to the balcony?"

"I dunno, maybe because Clint!" Toni shrieked. Steve, panicking, threw himself at her. He didn't know what he was doing, just that he need to distract her and hopefully calm her down. The two were a mess of lips and arms and Toni was pinned against the wall again and his hands were in her hair and he felt oddly guilty for liking what was happening. And then the elevator doors opened and he wondered, later, why life seemed to interrupt at the worst of times.

Clint and Nat stood before them once more, Toni's eyes shot over to them as she and Steve froze in place. Clint was practically hysterical.

"Oh for fu- What is with you two?!" Toni screamed.

"Getting it on in an elevator." Clint laughed, hanging on Nat. Nat looked down at her partner.

"He... I have no answer." Nat admitted. Toni sighed and pushed Steve off her, slightly disappointed that his lips weren't on her anymore. "We'll take it after you two are off." Nat instructed.

STSTSTSTST

It was night and Toni was staring at her bed. She couldn't help but think of the dreams that plagued her sleep for the previous few nights, worse than the ones that sent to Steve's arms. She bit her lip then turned around. When she opened the door she was surprised to find Steve standing in front of her, frozen in the action of preparing to knock.

"Steve? What are..." She trailed off, catching on the bags under his eyes. "You have problems sleeping, that's right." She mumbled. He chewed on his lip nervously.

"I can go back to-"

"No. I need- I can't sleep either. Not properly. Not like three nights ago." She told him. He nodded and followed her in, closing the door behind him. Before he knew it Toni was in bed, waiting for him to come wrap his arms around her. He took a breath and then did exactly that, pulling her close, and then his eyes were closed. Closed to the daily fear and pain of the world. He felt Toni's breathing which got him in a calming rhythm.

"What do you dream about?" He mumbled to her. She sighed, tightening her grip on his hand.

"New York, the portal... all of it really. And you?" She replied. Steve steeled himself to answer the question.

"It's a long story, not so much as traumatizing, more like destructive. I'm still having a hard time adjusting to this era." He told her. She turned over so she could face him. Up close all of her features were suddenly clear, clear and sharp and always beautiful. Steve brushed some of her hair off her cheek.

"I didn't want to tell you but I found my dad's files on you." She said. He furrowed his brow. "You were anemic and color-blind and asthmatic and... Why did you want to join the army?" She asked. He pursed his lips and shook his head.

"I don't know, it was the right thing to do I guess." He replied. Toni shook her head.

"You're insane. You're so... so... so Steve Rogers." She mumbled and gently kissed him on the lips. She could feel sparks running through her veins at the touch, the closeness that came with the kiss. She pulled away, her lips sliding off.

"Is that a bad thing?" He whispered, perhaps he was flirting but Toni couldn't tell.

"No. No, it's just very startling. It's very- God, the only word I can think of is your name." Toni sighed. Steve smiled and kissed her cheek.

"We should sleep, perhaps now we can both actually do that." He murmured. Toni nodded, pushing her face into his shoulder and closing her eyes. There was a certain comfort in the way his arms wrapped around her, one she wasn't sure if she could get anywhere else.

And so they slept, curled into each like two puzzle pieces, Steve with his arms around her slept soundly for the first time in a long time. There was no need to find Natasha and beg her to talk to him or let him lie next to her or ask her to watch Bolt late at night. Instead he got sleep, real sleep, and he had Toni to help too. He was now her nightmare deterrent, her wall between the dreams of New York and being taken as a hostage and her fear of mortality. And the two dreamt of good things, things that made them happy and didn't give Toni panic attacks or keep Steve up for fear of seeing his friend's last expression.

STSTSTSTST

Toni came sliding into the living quarters where Clint was reading a book entitled _The Absolutely True Diary a Part-Time Indian_ and had a popsicle stuck between his teeth. Where Nat was laying on the couch with her feet in the air and was reading something on her phone. Where Rhodey, who was visiting for the first time in a while, was flipping through the TV channels. And where Steve was attempting to make lunch. Everyone looked up as she scrambled not to slide into the wall. Rhodey flashed her a grin because he hadn't seen her all day. (She'd locked herself downstairs in her shop with Black Sabbath blaring on the stereo system.)

"OhmyGodguysIknowwhatwe'reforthedaywearesogettingfondueandteriyakitogoandwearepicnicingandhavingamovienighttonight." She shouted, meshing the words together.

"Why fondue and teriyaki?" Rhodey asked. Clint looked over at the Colonel sitting in the corner.

"How did you make out any of that?" He asked incredulously.

"Because I'm craving it that's why!" Toni shouted back.

"Fondue? What?!" Steve demanded. "Who is... fondue-ing?" He continued, catching slightly before saying the last word. Everyone gave him a sideways glance.

"We are." Toni replied awkwardly.

"Um... I think I'll pass on that." He mumbled.

"Seriously though guys, how did Rhodes make out any of that?" Clint asked again.

"What? Why?!"

"Because I love fondue..." Toni said. Steve rushed over and led her to the corner.

"Toni, I kind of thought that we weren't ready for that in our relationship." He whispered fiercely. Toni blinked at him. "I assumed that was something that would happen when we're... more serious." He continued. Realization dawned on Toni and suddenly she was doubled over. Nat rocketed forward, alerted by the noise that she thought was screaming. Her muscles visibly relaxed when she saw Toni practically on the floor laughing. Steve looked at her. For the second time that week Toni was laughing at him so hard she was crying. He wondered if this was going to become a thing.

"Toni?" Nat called. Toni started trying to regain herself but it didn't work. She fell into Steve's arms, laughing into his shoulder. There was quiet all around the room as she laughed, and Steve heard her mumbling something that sounded like "Dad wasn't lying!" It reminded Steve that Toni's father was Howard Stark, the man that had basically created him. And that Toni had probably grown up hearing stories and reading comics about _Captain America_. He winced slightly.

"What happened?" Rhodey asked, standing up to see better. Toni finally collected herself and straightened up.

"Steve thinks that fondue is sex!" She laughed. Clint cracked a grin and Nat just stared at the man supporting Toni Stark. Toni turned back to the super soldier. "Steve, honey, fondue is melted cheese for dipping food in." She said, patting his chest. He looked at her, flushing red.

"I should go finish lunch." He mumbled, head down, and slinked back to the kitchen. Toni worked her way over to Rhodey as a chorus of laughter broke out in the room. She plopped down next to him, bumping shoulders.

"How you been?" She asked coolly, like she always did around him.

"Pretty damn good Toni. What about you? I didn't know you and Steve were- uh- dating." He said. Toni shrugged, glad that her old friend finally decided to stop by.

"Yeah... that's not even a story really. And technically we weren't officially dating till a few days ago." She said.

"Ah yes, the old after-battle intercourse eh?" Thor said, surprising the two. Toni jumped slightly at his voice.

"No we were just... What the fuck do you mean 'after-battle intercourse'?" She shouted, processing what he'd said.

"You know, to relieve that adrenaline and what not." Thor said, quieter now. Toni glared at him.

"Where is God's name is that a thing?"

"Do mortal warriors not do that? I had thought that you and friend Rogers started that a while ago. And friend Clint and Natasha too." Thor replied. Clint, behind them, blushed a vivid red and Nat glared at him. Toni caught it, but just barely, and she wondered if perhaps there was truth to that part of Thor's statement. Toni sighed.

"No Thor, 'friend Rogers' and I haven't had after-battle sex. That's not something we're accustomed to on Earth." Rhodey cracked a grin at Toni's discomfort. Thor, with a look like a scolded puppy, took a seat next to Clint.

It took Steve a while to finally talk to any of them. And when he did he had meekly piped up with, "What were you doing down in the shop all day?" Toni looked over, shocked out her little world watching _Pimp My Ride_ with her legs strewn across Rhodey's. It made Steve suddenly desperate for them to have that kind of familiarity.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. I was actually making you a surprise. Come on, I'll show you." She said, swinging her legs off Rhodey and then standing. Steve turned off the stove, clearly having burned whatever he'd been making for lunch.

She led him into the elevator where he pressed button for the underground level that was her shop. As they relaxed, as the ride was a fairly lengthy one, Toni found herself leaning back against Steve's chest, breathing him in. His arm was suddenly over her shoulder and he was interlacing his fingers with hers, swinging their hands slightly. The corner of Toni's lips tugged into a blissful smile. Sometimes, she thought, it was the little touches, the easy way he held her or smiled with her that reminded her that happiness is real.

The doors slid open, revealing her shop which was cluttered and messy. Steve let her led the way out, their fingers still intertwined. Inside the shop was a mannequin sporting a suit. It wasn't just any suit either, it was a modified Captain America suit. Steve looked at it, not quite comprehending what it was really. Toni glanced from Steve to the suit a few times. It was all navy blue and now resembled the original suit more, in the sense that both had a very industrial, bulky feel to them.

Toni waited expectantly as Steve took in the suit. There was silence.

"Why?" He mumbled. Toni looked a little shocked.

"What do you mean why? You needed a new suit so I made you one." She said. Steve looked over at her, catching her expression,

"No! No, don't get me wrong Toni, I like it! I really do but it's just a little bit... Why'd you really make it?" He asked, turning back to the suit. She chewed her lip for a minute and then turned her gaze to the suit.

"Your file kind of freaked me out, I couldn't stop thinking about it so I made this. It's a carbon fiber weave design I created last night. Jarvis and I woke up early to start construction. And the star and shoulder stripes are lightweight titanium so there's extra protection there." She said, sitting down on a toolbox. "I didn't really mean to overreact but I couldn't stop thinking 'What if Steve got hurt in a fight' and that if you did I sure as hell wouldn't sleep again. I'm kind of relying on you now big guy." She sighed. Steve sat down next to her, bumping shoulders like he'd seen her do to Rhodes.

"I like it." He whispered. She turned her head to look at him. Their faces were inches away and their eyes were locked together. "I'm relying on you too, you know. I sleep pretty awful without you and you've kind of grown on me." He said. She tried to force back the grin that was playing with her lips.

STSTSTSTST

Three weeks to the day since Toni and Steve had made it official and it still made Nat gag whenever they were near each other. Of recent they'd grown annoyingly close and no longer tried to conceal their relationship. Now you'd walk into the living quarters and see Steve whispering something in Toni's ear that would make her crack up and Clint would just pout because he didn't know what it was. Or Nat would do her regular morning wake-up walk through the tower and she'd discover Steve and Toni holding each other in their slumber. But for Nat, the most annoying thing was when they used the living room couch as a napping place.

It was Friday Night Movie Night. And for the Avengers, Movie Night was a big deal. To Toni it was the biggest deal in the world. She avidly believed, while not outright showing it, that the Avengers were a family and families have Movie Nights. Every night it alternated 'Movie Pickers' which was a very prestigious position decided by who won the previous nights hardcore Board Game Championships. The games generally rotated between _The Amazing Labyrinth_, _Settler's of Catan_, _Risk_ and finished with _Apples to Apples_. Suffice to say Nat herself generally never got to pick movie. Tonight, much to everybody's surprise though, she was picking. She'd never done awesome at the other games but she almost always won Risk.

Apparently Toni had psyched herself up all day for Movie Night and then crashed. Steve, after a long day attempting to help Clint shop for groceries, was also tired. Nat, searching their cabinets for a movie two hours in advance, walked into the living room to find Toni curled up against Steve. Nat hissed slightly in attempt to avoid walking into Steve's stretched out arm. Clint looked up from his book, a new one since yesterday's hadn't lasted long.

"Ack, their like cats..." She grumbled, pausing to glare for a moment. "It's disgusting." It wasn't quite contempt in her voice, a kinder version but close. Clint smiled and then flicked his chin at the cabinet full of movies.

"Which one are we watching tonight?" He asked. She shrugged. _Moulin Rouge _was out because she'd cried at the end. The movie adaptation of _Anna Karenina_ was awful so that was out too. She sat down on the floor, folding her legs crisscross-applesauce style and rocked back and forth. The silence in the room made Steve and Toni's breathing fairly loud. Nat grinned as she riffled through Bruce's collection of animated Disney movies (his favorite being Lilo and Stitch) and pulled out _The Princess and the Frog_. She held it up for Clint to see. Clint nodded in approval

"Yeah sure. It's a pretty good one if we're going to watch a Disney movie." He said. Nat looked up at him and sighed.

"I don't know if he's told her yet," She motioned to Steve and Toni. "But S.H.I.E.L.D wants him to start work with a hit team basically. It'll keep him busy and apparently I'm on it too. We're supposed to be at a briefing meeting tomorrow to get more information." She said. Clint nodded and motioned for her to sit as he scooted over. Nat, smirking, joined him.

"Are you okay going out again?" He asked, suddenly the serious side of Clint showed. She nodded.

"Yes, yes I am Clint. But thank you." She pecked him on the cheek, that friendly way that she was used to doing.

"You don't want me to request to join, do you?" He knew her too well too think she'd say yes but he had to say it. Maybe just so she knew he was there, maybe not. She looked over at the sleeping couple on the couch.

"Nah, it's not that big of a deal. I'll be home for dinner, I swear." She said, feigning the teenage girl. Clint wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close.

"Want to pull a prank on them?" He muttered to her, grinning.

* * *

_'...You're my mission.'_


	3. Winter Has Come

_Hello again! I am proud to present: CHAPTER 3! A very loud thank you to Vendelyn Silverhawk for writing the Textbook Article in this chapter as I fail miserably at those things. And of course, thank you Vendelyn for bring me to the dark side: We have Captain America. I do so hope you like this chapter, all of you, because this is my favorite yet. I especially like the end scene which was inspired by an idea Vendelyn and I shared. ENJOY!_

* * *

It had now been a month, straight down to the day exactly, since Steve had kissed Toni on the cheek, muttered 'I'll see you soon' in her ear and left. There'd been that one day where Nat had stopped in at the tower while all hell was breaking loose outside to say, "He's fine, I'm fine and I can't stay. We'll be okay, don't try to help." And then disappeared again. Clint had been on a rampage the moment the shit hit the fan, shouting about how they should go and Toni had stood by him. They'd hit every single location Steve and Nat had been the moment they got wind of them. Of course, with the fact they actually had to get to D.C. they were always a step behind the rogue Avengers.

When the news of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s downfall and this mysterious 'Winter Soldier' got out Toni was beyond pissed. She was afraid, scared- for both Steve and Nat and for the rest of them-and then she was violent. Every time Jarvis said 'Miss, there seems to be an encounter occurring with Captain America and Black Widow in...' Toni was out the door, fully suited up in the Ironman armor. Hawkeye and the others would have to catch up later, she didn't care, she just wanted Steve back.

So when Steve showed back up at the tower with some other guy and a metal-armed Winter Soldier in tow, Toni was furious. Toni had looked into this Winter Soldier once S.H.I.E.L.D. and Hydra's files ended up online. She'd read all there was to know about the elusive assassin that would pop up once every couple of years. And then she'd read the report on Howard and Maria Stark's death. That once Howard became an obstacle to Hydra, the Winter Soldier ensured their deaths in the automobile accident.

It wasn't the assassin that she hit first though, it was Steve.

She was sitting in the living room on the couch with her head in her hands, thinking. And then she heard the elevator ding and the doors slid open. She was on her feet in seconds, standing before the super soldier and his brainwashed murderer buddy. Steve gave her an apologetic look as they stepped out of the elevator.

"I know that sorry won't even cover it at all but if you could let me-" Steve was abruptly cut off by Toni's fist connecting with his jaw.

"I'm sorry, where do you sleep? Oh yeah! The tower that had _my_ name on it. You better have one damn good story or you can sleep with Clint on the roof." She yelled at him. Then a metal hand was clamped around her wrist, tightening like it was going to rip off her hand. Toni looked up and saw the Winter Soldier's expression and suddenly her Ironman gauntlet was flying onto her other hand, rocketing off the couch. She aimed it at the assassin's face. "Let go of my wrist." She growled, feeling Steve trying to separate them.

"You hit Steve." He growled back. The other guy that Steve had brought back with him side-stepped out from behind his companions.

"Toni, don't." He said. Toni's eyes shot to his, her gauntlet still aimed.

"And who the hell do you think you are?"

"I'm Sam, I've heard a lot about you from Steve. I've also had a fair share of experience with this one here in the past four weeks. Enough to know that he'll probably really hurt you if you don't back down." He said, but his tone was threatening or angry or challenging. It was surprisingly kind. Toni lowered her hand and then ripped her wrist free as the Soldier's grip loosened. She turned to Steve.

"You disappeared for four weeks without so much as a word. No warning that Captain America had to go do Captain America things. There was no call or text or any kind of contact and you never asked for our help. We were there, every single place that you were at we were at too. We looked for you guys and we couldn't find you. One minute you'd be off fighting and the next underground hiding out. And when the helicarriers launched, someone shut us down... disabled our entire operation. Somehow my suit was downed and the plane and communications. We were dark Steve, a complete blackout while you were off dying!" She shouted. Steve swallowed and looked at her sadly.

"I really am sorry. I would have come home but I needed to get Bucky." He mumbled.

"We're... Steve and I... he and I are together till the end of the line." A voice whispered. Toni turned around to see the Soldier looking solemn. Toni grit her teeth.

"Get him out." She grumbled.

"What? Toni no! I just found-"

"The son of bitch murdered my parents! Get him out right now!" She screamed. Steve wrapped his arms around her and pulled her away from Bucky. There were tears streaming down her cheeks as he turned her around. "He killed them and he tried to kill you and I hate him." She said, crumpling to the floor and starting to sob. Steve was at a loss for words as he held her, glancing up at Sam unsurely.

"I- I didn't know." He muttered, thinking of Howard who was his jokester friend from way back when. Howard who had a way with the women and could always lighten the room. Howard who had been friends with Bucky.

"It's... I get flashes. They're only flashes but..." Bucky's voice murmured. For an assassin, Toni thought, he was awful quiet when he talked. He stared at Steve intently for a second.

"He doesn't remember killing them, Toni. But we both remember your dad." Steve piped up with.

"He was... a friend, I-I think. I- I can't apologize for what I did. It wasn't... me. I can..." He trailed off again, looking to Steve for help.

"He can apologize for what the Winter Soldier did though."

"I won't expect anything." He continued, still sounding completely broken and uncertain. Toni examined his face, his expression.

"You knew my father?" She mumbled. Steve nodded.

"Yeah, your father helped a lot with the SSR and Bucky was a Howling Commando. We all used to go out drinking together." Steve answered. Toni kept her eyes fixed on Bucky and then sighed, biting her lip. She knew that there was Bucky and then there was the Winter Soldier. She experienced it too with Ironman and simply Toni. She may have been Ironman but she wasn't _truly_ Ironman.

"He can stay." She felt Steve breath a sigh of relief. She looked back at Steve. "Make sure you take me with you next time you plan on going off for four weeks with a death wish." She whispered, he nodded. There was silence as Sam led Bucky off somewhere else in the living quarters.

"Can sorry cover it for now?" Steve asked. Toni, teeth on edge, nodded cautiously. There was a second where she thought nothing was going to happen but then Steve kissed her. It was slow and careful and not demanding. It was something Toni had been craving since the day he left. "I'm sorry." He whispered gently, letting the words float around them for a minute.

STSTSTSTST

When Clint came down to the living quarters floor to find Steve, Bucky and Sam he was hoping to see Nat too. He had no such luck. There hadn't been a word from the elusive Black Widow. Steve was apologetic and told him how when they went off to find Bucky, Nat went way under to try and recuperate. He said that they had hoped to receive word from her but it would come in due time. Clint was still pissed, on edge and scared. He relied on Nat and Toni thought that perhaps he may also love her. Now Toni knew how it felt to not have someone you love by your side. She could honestly say now that she'd been scared for Steve because she was and she loved him. It was a foreign concept to her.

And of course, now they had Bucky to deal with. He was still rehabilitating after his... experience. They'd been back for a week and still no word from Black Widow. Toni figured that Nat was the only one that could really relate to Bucky. The next best thing, she realized bitterly, was herself because she'd been kidnapped, abused and forced to make a weapon of mass destruction. That and Steve had asked her to talk to him. Maybe he hoped that if she did Bucky would approve of them or something. So she did. She found a time when the living quarters were empty and it was just Bucky mindlessly watching some show about modernized fairy tales. Toni sat down next to him, careful not to alarm him as she placed a book between them. There was silence as they watched the modern retelling of _Alice in Wonderland_. He spared a quick glance at her but then returned his gaze to the TV.

"I wanted to show you something." She said, grabbing the textbook. Bucky looked over as she flipped through the pages till she found what she wanted. "Here. Steve said you were a part of the Howling Commandos. After the war it got put down in the school system. This is just an example but I thought you and Steve might want to see it." She said, handing him the open book. Bucky looked at it for a minute.

**_Captain America: The Howling Commandos, the home front, the war_**

_When he was twenty-five, Steven Grant Rogers attempted to enlist for the fifth time at a recruiting center in New York City. It was midway through the Second World War and all eligible men were being called to the front lines of Europe, but Rogers, plagued with a myriad of physical deficiencies such as asthma and heart murmurs, was denied enlistment (Fig. A.2). However, this was no ordinary man wanting to serve his country- this was the man that the world would later know as Captain America, and it all started with that fifth attempt._

_Rogers' determination to join the armed forces that night caught the attention of Dr. Abraham Erskine, a German scientist working with the Strategic Scientific Reserve to develop an experimental Super Soldier Serum, which was the counter to the more aggressive Manhattan Project. Operation: Rebirth would make an army; it just needed a test subject first. Rogers, standing at 5'7 and 110 pounds, was chosen for the testing phase and on July 23, 1943, the world was changed._

_Captain America was born, the perfect soldier who was strong, fast, and an expert tactician and strategist (Fig. A.3). At the time it looked like the U.S. had finally found a way to win the war without sacrificing so many men, and without turning to the atomic bomb. Unfortunately, Erskine was assassinated by a member of HYDRA, the Nazi deep science division, shortly after the first test demonstration; the key to the serum was lost, and Rogers was the only living remnant of Erskine's work._

_Throughout the fall of 1943 Rogers was used as a propaganda machine by Senator James Brant of Illinois, since the super soldier serum could not be easily replicated. The U.S. had lost her advantage, and government funding was provided to the Manhattan Project, the tool that would ultimately end the war in the Pacific Theatre. Comicbooks, trading cards, and musical shows were used all across the country to raise money for the war effort by selling bonds. Thus, the character Captain America was created, a star-spangled hero who punched Hitler in the jaw and rolled out "Every bond you buy is a bullet in the barrel of your best guy's gun!" to musical accompaniment (Fig. A.4)._

_When he was finally brought to the front lines in late 1943, it was because the army wanted to raise morale among the defeated soldiers of the European theatre, who faced trenches, advanced weaponry, and the ideological onslaught of Nazism at every turn, although it would be two years before the first concentration camps were discovered by U.S. soldiers. Rogers took his time into his own hands, however, after realizing that one of the groups of servicemen he had performed for was the same that childhood friend James Buchannan Barnes, affectionately referred to by Rogers and later the Howling Commandos as "Bucky" had been drafted into._

_Barnes had shipped out months before with the 107__th__ Infantry Regiment, one of the first U.S. forces to go up directly against HYDRA's new weaponry. The regiment was decimated at the Battle of Azzano, and when Rogers discovered that prisoners of war had been taken, he mounted an unauthorized rescue mission with help from former MI6 agent Margaret Carter and weapons tycoon Howard Stark, both of whom went on to pioneer the modern intelligence agency known as S.H.I.E.L.D.. In this famous rescue attempt, Rogers, still in his Captain America costume and sporting the red, white, and blue shield he used for shows, parachuted thirty miles beyond enemy lines into occupied Austria and penetrated the defenses around one of HYDRA's many weapons manufacturing plants._

_The details of the mission, released with the Freedom of Information Act by the government decades later, were not clear until much after the incident. Regardless, armed only with a shield, a handgun, and his serum-enhanced body, Rogers succeeded in rescuing almost every single prisoner in the factory and even destroyed it on his way out, causing a major blow to HYDRA's manufacturing capabilities._

_The incident, while a mess for the army as they tried to sift through the rescued POWs, which were a motley mix of English, French, American, and segregated units for African Americans and Japanese Americans from U.S. internment camps, was a triumph for the SSR. Captain America was more than a figurehead, and Steven Rogers was ready for combat._

_Awarded his own special team, dubbed the "Howling Commandos," Rogers became a major player in the European theatre, leading over two hundred missions against HYDRA and its leader Johann Schmidt, otherwise known as the Red Skull for his own part in Erskine's original super soldier experiments. The Howling Commandos were one of the first desegregated units of the time, and consisted of POWs from the HYDRA camp that Rogers liberated in his search for Barnes: Timothy 'Dum Dum' Dugan, Gabriel Jones, Jim Morita, James Montgomery Falsworth, Jacques Dernier, and James Barnes himself as second-in-command (Fig. A.5)._

_With Captain America fighting the war, the battlefield changed in the Allies' favor significantly, and morale boosted on the home front as comicbooks picked up on new stories about "Captain America and his brave Howling Commandos!" (Fig. A.6). The European theatre gradually shifted as Nazi Germany lost the advantage HYDRA gave to it, its fate sealed by the capture of its head scientist Dr. Arnim Zola. Tragically, during the mission where Barnes, Rogers, and Jones infiltrated a HYDRA weapons shipment train that was carrying Zola, Zola was captured but Barnes was blown out the side of the train. The fall, over two thousand feet, claimed Barnes' life, which was the first personal casualty of war for Rogers and his men._

_James Barnes was the only Howling Commando to give his life for his country, and that loss, according to Agent Carter, was what drove him to his last mission before he went into the ice: bringing down HYDRA's fleet of Valkyrie bombs, which would have taken the war directly to the U.S. homefront and possibly caused the largest wave of civilian casualties during a war in American history. By hijacking the leading Valkyrie, Rogers was able to defeat Johann Schmidt, but due to unreleased documents it is unknown what actually caused the fatal crash that left Rogers entombed in ice and snow._

_Steven Grant Rogers and his Howling Commandos changed the face of WWII, both through propaganda on the home front and their specialized mission to take down HYDRA. Without their contributions it's possible that Hitler, supplied by HYDRA's weapons, would have been able to overrun the Allies in those last few, critical battles, and that the HYDRA Valkyrie strike would have decimated dozens of major American cities, potentially plunging the U.S. into another economic crisis and changing her policies as a global power on being the peacekeeper of Europe. For the man Erskine chose, however, it was always about more than just winning the war; it was about peace, prosperity, and the willingness to die for what was irrevocably and unquestionably right._

Bucky looked at Toni, blinking absently before saying, "I forgot Steve's middle name. I... I shouldn't have but I did." He mumbled sadly. Toni sighed.

"Well now you know right." She supplied. He nodded.

"Yeah... Can I keep this?" He asked. Toni, smiling, nodded back.

"Definitely, just promise to show it to Steve for me." Bucky looked at her, wary of her grin.

STSTSTSTST

With Bucky now residing full-time in the tower, the Avengers were suddenly a more wary group. Loud noises and pranks no longer took place and if Bucky was watching TV the Avengers would avoid bothering him. One person alone could talk to him, Steve being the only being in the tower able to disturb his TV time or crack bad puns at him. But even with an attempt at humor Steve was still broken around Bucky. Bucky wasn't Bucky anymore really, he didn't remember a quarter of the event of Steve and his childhood and he had completely forgotten his full name till Steve reminded him. Toni wished that Nat would come back because Bucky was still alone, even with Steve. And because of Nat's disappearance, it was up to Toni to try and bond with the ex-assassin. Toni suddenly realized why she didn't want kids.

Bucky and she had a rocky relationship, one that had been growing now for three weeks. It was either horrible or horribly wonderful. Toni enjoyed cracking the 'Winter is Coming' joked whenever Bucky walked in the room, which always made Steve crack a smile. Toni knew that she shouldn't push his buttons but it is what she did best and, she decided, the kid needed a little push back into the real world. She also hoped that with their budding friendship, Bucky would stop shooting his dark looks at she and Steve whenever they were within three feet of each other.

So on the second day of his fourth week at the tower, Toni was overly excited at Bucky's response to Steve's offer of going on a something or another movie marathon. Steve had walked up to him, muted the TV and suggested what they should do on that day. Bucky gave him an apologetic look.

"Toni and I were going to go out and see a movie." Bucky mumbled. Steve, surprised and somewhat sad, nodded.

"That's cool too."

Steve found Toni in the kitchen, so he knew she'd heard what had just happened in the TV room. He walked over to her, ecstatic, and hugged her. It surprised her, making her wonder what she'd done to deserve getting the life squeezed out of her by a super soldier.

"Thank you." He whispered to her. "Thanks for connecting with him." Toni blushed.

"It wasn't too bad. He's actually nice when you get over the fact that he's murdered dozens of people." She replied. Steve ignored her comment and kissed her.

"Don't kill him, freak him out or trigger a memory and you guys should have a great time!" Steve said. Toni nodded, feeling oddly reassured.

The two ventured around town, Toni forced him into the Louis Vuitton to show him the changes in fashion- and ended up purchasing him a nice leather jacket. Bucky insisted that they stop by the area of Brooklyn from which he originated and then they went to watch _Maleficent_. While Toni left mildly disappointed- as there was not nearly enough violence and gore for her- Bucky left fascinated by the digital and the story. Bucky spent the entire ride back recounting his favorite parts to Toni, who listened with rapt attention despite having just watched the movie ten minutes previous.

When they returned to the tower all Bucky could do was tell Steve about his day, showing him the leather jacket that Toni had bought for him. Toni thought that Bucky, while maintaining a level of calm during his stories, was like a small child, a constant need for attention from Steve and had energy when he really needed it. Perhaps that was what fascinated Toni so much, that Bucky could either be as sincere and excited as a toddler or quiet and reclusive- only letting Steve in.

STSTSTSTST

Bucky sat on the couch, glaring at the face on the TV screen angrily. Steve walked in.

"Buck, I don't have to go tonight..." He said. Bucky looked over at him fiercely.

"Don't be stupid." He growled. His eye caught on the iridescent red and gold striped tie that Steve was sporting, unsure now with whether he was angry or just paranoid with the idea of being without Steve for the third time that week. "You and Toni clearly have not had a night out since I showed up." Steve bit his lip and examined his friend's expression.

"You're sure?" Steve asked. Bucky nodded.

"I'll be fine Steve." Bucky sounded halfway miserable and halfway happy, he just had to decide which he was going to feel. Toni walked into the room in a long elegant, red and gold, mermaid cheongsam. Steve looked over at her as she was pinning a white pearl earring in her left ear. Bucky's mood lifted when he saw Steve's face.

"Is he going to be okay here alone?" She asked, gesturing to Bucky with her elbow. Bucky huffed.

"I'll be fine, I'm a big kid." Toni pursed her lips and then straightened her dress, which extenuated how tall she really was.

"Alright then. Come on Steve, the big kid wants to watch his cartoons. Maybe he can figure out the IPod, then he can listen to All the Single Assassins." She extended her arm, waiting for Steve to take her hand. Steve gave her a scolding look, but it failed.

"Don't break too much stuff jerk." Steve said, turning back to look at Bucky.

"Just get out of here... punk." Bucky called back.

The elevator doors slid closed and Toni turned to Steve, who was leaning back against the elevator wall. Toni looked over at him, smiling.

"What?" He asked. She sashayed across the medium sized elevator and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"This is the first time you and I have gone out alone in... like two months." She murmured. Steve let a smile break out across his face as she eased even closer.

"Can I ask where this place is that we're going?" She shook her head, still smiling, and gently brushed her lips against his. He pressed forward ever so slightly so as kiss back, still holding his smile too.

They ended up outside the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Steve, staring out the window in awe, carefully opened his door and stepped out. Toni followed him out, smiling at his excitement.

"Why is it still open at seven?" He asked breathlessly.

"It helps when you're Toni Stark and have enough money to rent the museum for a couple hours." She replied.

"You... why?" He mumbled.

"Because I love you that's why." She replied coolly, resting an arm on his shoulder. "Better hurry in." Steve, somewhat dumbstruck, followed after her.

"Did you just say-"

"It's rather lovely, don't you think? The Met at night." She asked. He looked over at her, nodding uncertainly. Toni walked on, unknowingly leaving Steve standing behind her at a loss for words. When she realized she turned around, confused. "Are you coming Steve? It's rather spectacular what they have inside and I'd rather get inside before they think we're not coming. And I'm sure the press will be showing up at any time." She sighed. Steve gave her a look and she suddenly felt a pang of worry. "Steve?" He approached her slowly, taking her hand as he did so.

"Yeah let's go." He whispered.

Inside it was empty save for the museum docents who were dispersed one or two to each room. Four museum staff members were waiting by the doors to open them for Steve and Toni with a cordial, "Ms. Stark, Mr. Rogers". Toni wondered if Steve appreciated this whole thing, emptying the museum for his own personal viewing purposes. She pushed the thought from her head and allowed him to lead her around, arms hooked together. They ended up in the Paintings and Drawings wing, striding slowly down the hall.

"Next time we'll come for the whole day but for now we can see whatever you want." She mumbled to him. He kissed her cheek.

"Thank you. This is amazing." He replied.

Steve was, Toni could tell, in awe of every single one of the drawings in the long hallway. She also noted how the ones that depicted death or suffering made his eyes grow dull. In an attempt to pull him back from the demons haunting him, she'd lean on him or intertwine their fingers or make a comment about him.

"One day." She said. Steve looked up from the paintings.

"One day?" Toni gave him a flash of a grin when she turned to look at him for a split second.

"One day I'm going to fly us to Paris and we're going to go to the Pompidou. We're going to spend an entire day there because I know you'd love it. It's my favorite modern art museum. Of course that's not a high compliment, I don't like art but... I'm going to sit, you keep looking around." She mumbled, seating herself on a bench and relaxing. Steve looked over at her, calm smile on his face.

Down at the end of the hall Toni could see two docents chatting away, ignoring Steve and her. Steve sat down next to her, pulling out a slim sketchbook from his bag. He flipped it open to a half filled page. Toni put her hand on the page before he could flip to a clean one.

"You never showed me your drawings before. Steve you're really good." She said. Steve looked at her.

"I haven't? Really? Huh. Thank you, Toni, that means a lot." He hummed. Toni watched as he doodled until finally she merely leaned against him, eyes closed and breathing him in.

After a while Toni finally stood, sighing and straightening her dress. She looked around at the hall they'd been in for the past half hour. Pursing her lips, she looked back to Steve.

"I'm sorry Steve but we've got to go. We have dinner reservations in fifteen." She said, reaching out for his hand. He took her hand and stood, sliding the book back in his messenger bag. Toni made two mental notes: Buy him another, thicker sketchpad and flip through that one.

STSTSTSTST

When Toni and Steve returned home, Bucky was asleep on the couch- but they didn't know that yet. The elevator dropped the two off on his room's floor. Toni was laughing at something he'd said.

"I've got to go check on Bucky. I'll be right back." He said, kissing her cheek. Toni left the elevator, walking down the hall to Steve's room which she'd practically moved into. Once inside, she couldn't help but think about how it used to be; two friends with constant looks of disappointment around her. And then she thought of Rhodey's last visit, how unusually happy he looked when he was around her. And Pepper, ever since she and Steve started dating. She no longer received the thinned lips and creased brow from Pepper because Pepper was no long escorting a new reporter out of her house two times a month. She no longer had Rhodey's angry voice scolding in her drunken ear as he led her away from a rambunctious party. She only had Steve's smiles and concentrated brow furrows to pay attention to. The door opened behind her, rocking her out of her demons' arms.

"How was he?" She mumbled, unhooking the small toggles on the front of the dress. She could hear Steve sliding off his jacket.

"He was fine, sound asleep on the couch. I debated hauling him to his room down here but I thought I'd just leave him." He replied, running his hands up to her shoulders. She looked back at him, twisting her neck around. She was met not with his sharp blue eyes and annoyingly perfect blonde hair but with his lips. It was a deep kiss, not like most of their others. This one, she could tell, meant something important. He slowly pulled away, letting his lips trail off hers gently. "You said you love me earlier tonight." He whispered. She nodded slowly, still a little dazed by his kiss. "I need to repay the favor. Toni Stark, I love you." He said, his lips easing over hers once more. "I love you, I need you." She pushed towards him, losing herself in his arms and lips and touch and words.

"Steve..." She whispered breathlessly with her lips still against his. He could feel her words, her breath and the movement of her lips against his. "... I've never loved someone, not the way I love you and I never want to have to again." He gave her a flicker of a smile and then kissed her again. Toni placed a hand on his cheek and one of his neck as she leaned back slightly, letting Steve support her weight. She was left at a loss for even thoughts. Steve was kissing her, like actually kissing her and not being awkward about it, he was actually kissing her and that was all she could think. Then his lips slid off hers gently, leaving Toni trying to catch her breath.

"What? No fondue?" She teased, breath labored. Steve blushed, even in the dark room Toni could see his cheeks flushing red. She fumbled with the last toggle on her dress and slipped it off, he could hear her mumble the words 'boy scout'. Steve debated averting his eyes for a second but then she was in bed. "Steve." She murmured before he could climb into bed next to her.

"Hmm?" He replied, sliding down next to her.

"I'm going to convert part of the penthouse into a studio for you." Steve's attention shot to her, no longer was he groggy, hazed from kissing or distracted by her body fitted against his.

"What? Toni, you don't have to do-"

"Of course I do, Bruce has his labs, I have my shop, Clint has the balcony, Nat has... well basically free reign over everything, and you have nothing here really. I mean you have your room but let's be honest, you can't... uh... art in here." She said, rolling over to face him. "Let me do this for you. Please." She whispered, growing quieter as she brought her lips closer to his. Steve's resolve crumbled as he pushed himself towards her.

"Fine." He mumbled, going in for the kiss. Toni smiled and rolled back over, knowing that she could undo him with the mere prospect of her lips.

"I'll see you in the morning babe." She purred and pushed herself closer against him, fitting alongside him like a long-lost puzzle piece.

STSTSTSTST

Bucky woke up far before anyone else would even consider rising from their slumber. He realized that he had fallen asleep on the couch and that during his rest had drooled. He wiped his mouth, glad that he was the first up so he could catch that. He sat forward, staring at the black television screen. Thoughts raced around in his head. Steve, Steve and Toni, experiencing human tendencies... he was concerned with how all these things made him feel... uncomfortable. He wasn't used to the feeling of worry or fear. He wasn't used to feeling a pang of paranoia when Steve said that he'd be going out with Toni for the night.

He looked around, not knowing what to do. Suddenly the elevator doors slid open and out walked a battered Clint Barton and an unconscious red-headed woman who looked vaguely familiar. Bucky watched them from the couch as Barton hauled the girl in. Carefully he eased down, not wanting to be seen by Clint, and watched as the sharpshooter lowered the woman onto the backside of the wraparound couch. Bucky, silently wishing Clint would magically disappear, rolled off onto the floor as Clint turned around. There was the sound of stirring.

"Nat?" Clint's voice asked.

"Mmm, what'd you do to me Clint?" She grumbled, Bucky could see this 'Nat' girl rubbing her eye with the palm of her hand as she regained consciousness.

"I knocked you out, consider it payback for New York." Clint shot back.

"New York was two years ago... why'd you do..." She trailed off, glancing Bucky from the corner of her eye.

"You weren't cooperating, I needed to bring you back." There was a subtle ferocity in Clint's voice. The girl was no longer paying attention but staring at Bucky warily.

"They actually found him." She mumbled. Clint looked up to find Bucky, attempting to scoot his way towards the elevator. Even her voice was familiar and it bugged him.

"Yeah, I was too busy knocking you out to tell you." Clint snapped, tossing a wet towel at her which she put on her forehead.

"So sorry for the inconvenience, I'll try not to go live my life next time." She growled back. Then she looked back at Bucky. "I'm Natasha, I was with Steve when you attempted to kill us. Thanks, by the way, that was so much fun." Clint rolled his eyes and shot Bucky an apologetic look.

"Don't listen to her Buck, she's got a horrible sense of sarcasm." Bucky suddenly remembered her. It hurt his head as the images started bombarding his brain.

_"__Do you even know your name." The girl whispered. She was young. Very young but that was all the Winter Soldier noticed of her. He did not reply, there were no words and nothing but a glare._

_ "__Take him back! He's done his job!" The Red Room man shouted aggressively. A flicker of something sparked inside of him, something that hoped the man hadn't heard what the girl with the red hair had whispered, what was that feeling though?_

"You." Bucky whispered fiercely. Nat furrowed her brow and then a gasp hitched in her throat. She remembered him, she'd always remembered him, but now he knew and she was panicking.

"You two know each other?" Clint breathed. Bucky nodded, standing and backing towards the elevator. Nat pushed herself forward and then spun to face the Winter Soldier.

"James wait!" She called. But it was too late, he was in the elevator and rushing for Steve's room. The idea briefly crossed his mind that barging in there might not be his best option but he did it anyways, concluding that it was Steve and while Steve now had a girlfriend he also had the sexual comfort level of a toddler.

He swung the door open, light flooded the room which woke Toni. Steve rolled over, grumbling, while Toni shot forward, fuming like a bull that had just seen red. Toni looked over at him.

"Fucking A Bucky! There's something called knocking!" Toni shouted at him. "Or not even coming near us till WE WAKE UP!" Steve pushed himself forward.

"What is it Bucky?" He grumbled.

"The Nat girl is here. She- I- We... I know her." Bucky said, one of his hands was pulling his long hair taut.

"You know her? How?" Steve replied, swinging himself out of bed and grabbing his shirt.

"I trained her, I think." Bucky's look of panic led Steve towards the door.

"For fu- DON'T KILL NAT!" Toni shouted at Bucky as he left.

The two exited the elevator together, Bucky shoulder-to-shoulder with Steve which made him think of the Howling Commandos. Bucky pushed the thought from his mind. Nat was sitting on the couch looking miserable, she looked up at the sound of the elevator.

"Hey there big guy." She mumbled, her usual snide comments were absent.

"Is she hungover?" Steve asked, addressing Clint. Clint shook his head.

"She could give Thor a run for his money. This woman does not get drunk, trust me I've tried." He muttered. Steve looked back at Nat.

"You guys knew each other, why didn't you tell me Nat?" He said, crouching at eyelevel with her. She shook her head.

"It wasn't important, I've tried to forget that too. He trained me, it was ruthless and violent. I don't bring it up in conversation." Nat snapped back. Steve pursed his lips.

"You could have told me when we first encountered him." Nat shook her head violently.

"No. Don't press me Steve, I hate that memory." Bucky sat down behind Steve on the lazyboy, he looked terrified, solemn, angry and paranoid all at the same time. Nat looked over at him. "You don't need to hate me or be afraid of me. I know what you've been through James, I can help." She cooed. Steve's gaze flickered between the two. Bucky eyed her cautiously. "Come here." She mumbled. Bucky warily did as he was told and sat down on the floor in front of her. Suddenly her fingers were running through his hair. "This was something that always made me feel better." She murmured. Steve watched in awe as Bucky let Nat braid a stand of his hair. Clint just glared.

"How would this make you feel better?" Bucky asked bitterly. She shrugged.

"I enjoyed the feeling of it. I liked it when Clint would do this because he wasn't using me, torturing me, brainwashing me, trying to murder me or anything else close. He was merely fiddling with my hair." Steve almost let out a gasp as he watched Bucky lean back against the couch with visible muscle relaxation. Bucky had remembered her, she had been someone he encountered a lot during his assassin life, someone that always understood him. Was always able to figure him out. The elevator doors slid open and a tired looking Toni walked out, clad in a black tank-top and jeans. She looked ready to say something snarky and abrasive but instead she blurted out, confusedly, "Nat...? Bucky are you getting your hair braided? Nat are you...?" Steve smiled widely. For the first time, he thought, there was peace at the Avengers Tower.

STSTSTSTST

Toni woke up a surprisingly cold bed. When she rolled over, she discovered that there was no Steve next to her, the source of warmth at night. She looked around in vain but noticed a piece of paper pinned to the door. She got up, pulling the sheets with her. Steve had left in the night or very early in the morning which ticked her off. After everything that had happened last night he up and left without telling her.

She waddled her way over to the door and snatched the paper from the door. On it in charcoal was a sleeping Toni. Her hair was strewn about the bed and her hand pressed against her face. It was of this morning, she assumed, probably around dawn. Steve had drawn it, she knew because she'd seen his other drawings now and they all had a way of capturing the life in the picture. Each one had a spark about them that made it so life-like. She smiled at the drawing, gently placing it on her dresser and grabbing some clothes.

In the living quarters, a now contented Clint was watching TV with Nat lying against him. Toni ambled into the kitchen, pouring herself a monstrous cup of coffee.

"Don't drink all that! I haven't had seconds yet!" Clint called, a hand coming up from the sofa back. Toni rolled her eyes as she sipped the coffee and searched the cabinets for breakfast. She heard a quiet, wisp-like figure stride into the kitchen. Guessing, she mumbled, "Brace yourselves, Winter is coming." She heard Bucky freeze to clench his fists and grit his teeth. She turned around and leaned back on the counter.

"You come to get brekkie, Buck, because you didn't eat at all yesterday." She said, a sly grin on her face.

"No." He groaned.

"We need to get you a mandatory schedule. Nat can enforce it." A thumbs-up appeared from where Clint's wave had.

"No, that's not important. What's important is the Steve told me to tell you to meet him on the balcony." His monotone voice stated. Toni sighed, nodded and made for the elevator, wondering what Steve would be summoning her up there for. The doors opened to the party deck, the firepit reminding her of Loki which made her shudder. She walked out to the balcony to discover her Ironman suit waiting for her with a piece of paper pinned onto it. In Steve's neat handwriting Toni read:

_You picked the location last time._

_Consider it date night again and meet me where Jarvis says._

Toni stepped into the suit and waited as it spurted to life, her visuals screen starting to glow with its data. Jarvis greeted Toni in her cordial Emily Blunt-ish voice. Toni, skeptical of what was going to happen, cleared her throat.

"Where are we going J?" She asked, strolling about on the balcony.

"One Brooklyn Heights Promenade, miss. It's a park in Brooklyn, I can patch through some directions for you if you wish." She replied. Toni shook her head.

"No, I know where it is." Toni launched off the platform, rocketing off towards Brooklyn and the small, hidden park where she was being directed to go. The clock in the upper corner of her view screen told her it was still early which made her confident that not a lot of people would be up to see where she landed. Then the park was in view so she prepared for landing. It was her usual one, slamming into a kneel with a fist on the ground. She looked around for Steve. She spotted him in the center of the park, dressed in his civies- the ones Toni liked so much, his tan slacks and red button up- and looking a mix of nervous and excited. She walked over, letting the suit fall off around her when she halted. Steve smiled at her.

"Can I ask why you dragged me out here, it's still morning you know and I haven't had my full dose of coffee yet." She said. Steve grinned wider.

"You didn't happen to grab that drawing did you?" He asked. She shook her head, perplexed.

"I didn't want to ruin it." She said. Steve shook his head and then pulled out the brand new Iphone that Toni had insisted he purchase. He unlocked it, pulled up his photos and handed her the phone, the drawing covering the screen.

"Study that for a minute while I talk." He mumbled. She nodded and looked down at the phone, examining the photo studiously. "When S.H.I.E.L.D. fell and it was heating up fast, I realized a multitude of things." Toni glanced up at him and then back down at the image. "I realized that I needed Bucky... a lot. I realized that I have more friends than I thought I did. I realized that things may have been easier had I included you and the other Avengers. But I think the most important thing I realized is that I need you." He paused. Toni looked up, locking eyes with him.

"Sam told me what happened. How can you say that when we both know you were ready to die on the helicarrier. You didn't care that you might not be getting off, so how can you look me in the eye and say that?" She demanded.

"I thought of you, in those moments. I thought of everything I had and I realized that what I have, it's worth dying for. But here was Bucky, my best friend and I needed him too because he's something worth dying for too. I felt angry with myself, angry that one half of me was willingly to die and leave you. The other half was angry that I wasn't willing to die and save Bucky. But I do need you. I didn't realize it till the prospects or losing or leaving you became real." He paused again and then motioned to the phone. "Have you figured out what's different in that drawing?" He asked finally. She shook her head. He smiled and walked over, standing behind her to point out the oddity in the picture. "Look at your hand, right there." He whispered, his chin nearing her shoulder as he leaned over slightly. She zoomed in on her hand in the drawing and then noticed it.

"Is that a...?" Steve grinned even wider and spun in front of her, dropping to one knee.

"Toni Stark, I need you. I'll always need you. I love you. I'll always love you. I figure that if I need you, that if I love you, then I ought to stand beside you from here on out. So will you marry me?" He asked. She stared at him, emotions bounced around in her head. Those few seconds felt like years as she watched him. He looked eager and she realized something too: That this man, who she may have claimed to hate a few years back, was the one person in the world who she could say she truly, with all her heart, loved. She got down on her knees in front of him and smiled a small, gentle smile. She leaned forward and kissed him softly.

"Yes." She whispered and kissed him again. In between kisses she managed to purr "My iced americano." Which made Steve smile, one of the most sincere smiles he would ever smile.


	4. Planning

**AN: Sorry it took so long to update, I've been busy with back-to-school prep, other fics, my own book and hyping myself up after writing the final chapter to this fic (For some reason I enjoy writing the ending before it's over). So ta-da! I hope you enjoy. Next is the wedding then the honeymoon and then either ending or i dunno. I'm working on a Mortal Instruments AU too so read that when I post it please! THANK YOU AND ENJOY AND R&R BECAUSE I NEED/LOVE/FEED OFF IT!**

QueenToniStark:

| Hallowed-be-thy-Castiel:

| | sparklyllama_pizza:

| | | gruntledauthor78:

| | | | feministfairytales:

| | | | | OH MY GODS GUYS YOU WILL NEVER BELIEVE WHAT I JUST

| | | | |WITNESSED. TONI. FREAKING. STARK. IN MY COFFEE SHOP

| | | | | CAPTAIN FUCKING AMERICA AT MY COFFEE SHOP

| | | | | GUYS THIS IS THE STORY OF THE DECADE I SWEAR I JUST

| | | | |SAW HIM PULL OUT A RING I'M HYPERVENHILATING WHERE

| | | | |ARE THE NEWS CREWS?

| | | | I JUST SAW IRONMAN FLY OVER MY NEIGHBORHOOD AND I'M

| | | | 99.99999999% PERCENT SURE THAT SHE WAS CARRYING CAPTAIN

| | | |AMERICA BRIDAL STYLE

| | | | #greatestdayofmylife #ToniRogers #i'mdying

| | | Are you serious? AVENGERS FANDOM ASSEMBLE THE KING AND QUEEN

| | | ARE GETTING HITCHED (and tumblr knew first, take that Fox news)

| | like that actually happened lol picture proof

| PICTURE PROOF GO CHECK INSTAGRAM YOU DYSFUNCTIONAL DINGLEHOPPER _[X]_

theIronPatriotRoxx:

| Masamigos:

| | the_brooklyn_boys:

| | | eorlingas98945:

| | | | OfficialBlackWidow:

| | | | | Human-disaster-zone:

| | | | | | _Captain America Proposes to Ironman at Brooklyn _

| | | | | |_Coffee Shop_

| | | | | | _[read more]_

| | | | | Awwwww Brooklyn! That's so sweet and low-key of Steve to

| | | | | propose there!

| | | | OK so I wasn't supposed to say anything before but now all bets are

| | | |off- I'm a security cop at the Met and the reason it was open and lit

| | | |up a few weeks ago was TOTALLY BECAUSE OF TONI STARK. She

| | | |literally rented the ENTIRE PLACE and showed up with Cap on her

| | | |arm and we were supposed to keep it a secret but $10 says the

| | | |buddy of mine who heard her say "I love you" doesn't have hearing

| | | |problems.

| | | That's amazing! I hear Cap really likes art, too- that's seriously too cute, I'm

| | | dying.

| | GUYS GUYS GUYS CUTE IS OFF THE TABLE TONI STARK JUST INSTAGRAMMED THE

| |RING

| _WHAAAAAAAT THE ACTUAL FUCK?! [X]_

**_Wedding Bells for Toni Stark and Steve Rogers?_**

_Tumblr, twitter, Facebook and any other social media source in existence is alive with the news of Toni Stark's engagement to Steve Rogers. It was late last week when early morning commuters were surprised with the appearance of the lone figure of Ironman zipping across the New York skyline. Fans of the highly secretive Avengers' members will be happy to know that yes, the Cap and Ironman are getting hitched._

_ "__I was having coffee near the Brooklyn Heights Promenade when I heard her land. Obviously I had to go investigate! I couldn't believe it when I saw Steve down on one knee in front of Toni." A witness said. "I wished I'd heard what he said but it was so romantic." As for the details (dialogue hem hem Toni!) on what went on, it's still on lockdown and we doubt that either Avenger will be releasing what went on any time soon._

_With the engagement having occurred we all await with bated breath the wedding of the century. Goodbye Princess Kate, hello Toni Stark... or should we say Toni Rogers? As for the venue, musician, designer, caterer, guest list, date and so on, we are in the dark. Let the Game of Media begin!_

Toni turned and grinned at Steve, putting down the tabloid in her hands. All occupants of the Avengers Tower were gathered around the newly engaged superheroes. It was a cheap tabloid, the one that no one ever believes but it was still fairly accurate. Steve was blushing slightly, but out of anger, embarrassment or both Toni couldn't tell.

"I feel like that just sucked the romance out of that entire moment." Steve muttered. Toni grinned at him.

"See, this is why my wedding would never be made public. I'd keep everything in here if need be. No one would ever know." Nat said. Clint looked at her.

"You want to have a wedding?" He asked.

"I mean, if I ever find the right person. So far that's been a pretty tall order." She replied. Everyone turned around at the sudden sound of the elevator doors sliding open and boots clicking on the floors. It was Hill.

"Congrats Toni, Steve." She said, one arm cradling what looked like a stack of folders and paperwork.

"Thanks." Steve said, smiling. Toni just narrowed her eyes, wary of the papers in her arms.

"I would like to say I'm merely here for the well-wishing but I'm not. Unfortunately, we do have a problem. You guys all remember that one hero of New York a while back? Spider-man? Well he's been facing problems with someone labeling themselves Electro. I'm afraid we may need to intervene." She said, placing the files on the bartop. Toni groaned.

"Wait, who put you in charge?" Clint asked. Pepper cleared her throat.

"Since the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D. I asked Agent Hill to aid in keeping you guys on task." She answered.

"At least give us today. If the kid needs help tomorrow then we'll do it." Maria pursed her lips. "Come on Maria, I've got to pit media against media now." Toni pleaded. She huffed.

"Fine, but if that kid's dead tomorrow and we have to deal with the mess he wasn't able to handle then it's your fault and _you'll_ be in charge of cleaning it up." Toni nodded, silently mimicking Hill when she turned to leave.

"Now if you'll excuse me, I must go do what I delayed helping some poor kid for." Toni stood, grabbing her phone, and strode off for the elevator.

Toni walked out to the balcony and sat down on the floor, sitting cross-legged and staring out at the New York City horizon. She was wringing her phone in her hands when there were sounds of footsteps behind her. Toni sobered up, attempting to not look like she was about to cry. She was expecting Steve or maybe Pepper or Nat but instead Bucky sat down next to her. She looked over at him.

"Bucky?" She mumbled. He nodded. "What are you doing out here? It's going to rain soon, you don't want to get wet." Bucky shrugged and then leaned back on his hands.

"Why are you out here alone looking miserable? You're not... regretting- I think is the word- saying yes to Steve are you?" He asked. She shook her head quickly and put the phone down, proceeding to squeeze her fingers.

"No... I just..." She sighed and returned her gaze to the city. "I have a lot of problems Bucky." She finished. Bucky looked over at her.

"We all do." He replied.

"I know but... My mom would tell me stories of my parents' wedding sometimes. I just remember her telling me about her father giving her away and... oh shit." She mumbled, blinking back tears that were starting to come. She felt the tears stinging her eyes. "And I kind of pushed away my parents' death, tried to pretend it never happened but now I don't have a dad to give me away or a mom to fuss over every little thing." She said, starting to cry. She inwardly cursed herself for being so fragile. She was Toni Stark, why was she crying? Suddenly Bucky's arms were around her, pulling her close to him and her face was pressed into his shoulder. At first all she could think was how strange this had to be for Bucky, but then it was washed over by quiet tears.

There was quiet on the balcony before it started to rain. It started with a light sprinkle and then began to pour but the two stayed out there well after Toni had stopped crying. They just watched the now fogged city skyline and felt the fat drops fall on their heads. It took a while before they were interrupted, rocked back to reality by Steve shouting from the one dry spot on the balcony. Both Toni and Bucky turned to see Steve, with a worried expression, beckoning for them to come inside.

Bucky stood, offering Toni a hand which she graciously took and didn't crack a bad arm pun. They walked over to where Steve was standing. Toni, realizing that she'd just been sitting in the cold rain for almost an hour, wrung her hair out before they walked inside. Steve slipped off his jacket and draped it around her shoulders.

"What were you guys doing out there? It's pouring!" He said as they walked inside.

"I like the rain." Bucky muttered and skimmed the water off his metal arm, now emblazoned with the Captain America logo. Steve looked between the two and pushed the subject away, not wanting to force the two out of their boundaries. He kissed Toni's wet head and pulled her close to him, his arm around her shoulders. They walked back to Steve's room- which Toni had basically moved into- and Toni changed into yoga spandex and a cardigan.

The Avengers were lounging in the living room when they got down there. Nat was asleep in Clint's arms on the sofa as they watched some stupid reality TV show. Toni smirked slightly at Nat, who vowed she'd never be as outwardly cheesy as Toni and Steve. Clint shot Toni a look as she walked by, one that said 'Ignore her, I finally got her to sleep'. Toni squeezed next Steve, leaning her head back against him, in one of the armchairs. Relaxing against Steve calmed her, allowing her to forget the hour and a half spent on the balcony.

STSTSTSTST

"Next one." Toni mumbled. Pepper clicked the right-hand arrow to reveal a long, tight-fitting white dress. Toni shook her head. "I had more faith in Vera Wang. Too bad." She sighed. Pepper shrugged.

"I dunno, I kind of like it." Toni shook her head.

"No, it's too plain." She countered and picked up her phone. "It's ridiculous how much Tumblr is lighting up over this. Holy shit." Pepper looked over, pulling Toni's phone over so she could see what Toni was gawking at. On the screen of her Iphone was a long, thirties style wedding dress. It had a low neck with thick, bunched straps. Pepper gasped.

"That's amazing." She muttered. Toni nodded.

"I know! It's tagged #tonirogers and #weddinggownshowdown." She replied. Pepper took the phone from Toni and started scrolling through the photos.

"Oh my God, Toni these are amazing! Look, she did a line of outfits for every Avenger." Pepper said.

"I think we just found my dress designer!" Toni pulled the phone back and went to the girl's page, clicking the askmeanything button.

"What are you writing?" Pepper asked.

"That if I buy her an airline ticket, will she fly out here and design the clothes for my wedding?" She replied, typing excitedly on the phone. "And now we wait." And wait they did. The two camped out on the sofa staring at the Iphone for two hours, constantly refreshing the Tumblr page to reveal nothing new. Finally the girl's page refreshed and a new post popped up.

_HOLY SHIT DO YOU REALIZE WHAT JUST POPPED UP ON MY PAGE MY FOLLOWERS? DO YOU KNOW?! HOLY SHITBALLS!_

_TheToniStark asked you:_

_I saw your dress design tagged #weddinggownshowdown. If I bought you a first-class airline ticket to New York would you come design the clothes for my wedding? I loved what I saw._

_CharlietheMachineAdenna answered:_

_UM HELL YES TONI STARK, OF COURSE I WILL COME DESIGN CLOTHES FOR YOU!_

_GUYS: I am going to meet Toni Stark/Ironman and Captain fucking America... UYHIFBJKNLOBGIOYUGLFKYTCDIRXERU_

Toni leapt off the couch, pulling Pepper up with her. The two fell into each others arms and jumped around the room. That was the image that Bucky walked into the room to see. He furrowed his brow and then rolled his eyes, giving up on confusion with Toni. Steve was right on his heels, freezing behind Bucky as soon as he saw the two squealing women. He leaned over to Bucky.

"What's happening?" He whispered. Bucky shrugged.

"Hell if I know." He replied impassively. Steve slouched slightly, disappointed with Bucky's aid. Toni spun around, having heard Bucky's voice.

"I have wedding dress designer! I have a designer! Steve, I have a dress!" She shouted and then recovered herself. "Steve, one Charlie Adenna is flying out to New York to design the outfits for our wedding." She repeated. Steve smiled.

"Great, I'm glad you finally found someone." He replied.

"Oh no." Bucky mumbled. The two looked over at him. "I have to wear a suit don't I? Oh no." Steve snorted.

"Come on Bucky, you would've jumped at the idea back when I was puny Steve." Bucky shook his head.

"Steve, that was 70 years ago." Steve gave him a blank expression.

"So? I'm still having to wear one." Toni smacked his arm.

"You are not _having_ to wear one. It was your idea to get married, don't forget." She snapped. He kissed her cheek.

"Yeah, it was. I'm not regretting it." He said, pulling her tight into his arms. The two squirmed for a minute as Steve smothered her in kisses and Toni giggled loudly. Bucky rolled his eyes and continued over to the couch where Pepper was sitting. The two sat together for a minute.

"Not that long ago Steve was the invisible one and I was... I was the uh, woman-savvy one... I think. When did we switch?" Bucky mumbled. Pepper looked over at him.

"The moment you became a shaggy-haired, metal-armed assassin might be it. Well, he also got muscle to the max but that's a small side-note." She replied. Bucky shot her a look, an attempt at a sneer maybe? Then there was the noise of Toni, still giggling, pushing Steve away slightly.

"Oh my God Steve!" She breathed.

"What? What? Did I hurt you?" He asked, suddenly afraid as reached over to check her.

"No! No, Steve, do think that your off-duty Captain's uniform is around somewhere?" Steve furrowed his brow.

"Actually, I think the Smithsonian has it. For the exhibit. Why?" He replied. She squealed slightly and did a little dance.

"OhmyGod! Steve, wasn't it tradition in the military for officers to get married in their off-duty uniforms? What if you wore your uniform?! Oh. My. God. Steve this is so exciting. I feel like a child in a candy store. Quick Jarvis! Get me on the phone with Charlie Adenna, the one from my Tumblr page!" And with that she zoomed off for the elevator, leaving Steve standing in the middle of the Living Quarters, confused with pursed lips and narrowed eyes.

"What just happened?" He mumbled.

"Better go see if you can get that uniform. Toni's got the idea in her head and it won't go away now." Pepper drawled from the couch where she and Bucky were watching _America's Next Top Model_.

"This show is like crack. Fuck! Potts! That one chick just got voted off!" Bucky cried, throwing his hand into the air. Pepper looked over at the screen and gave a cry of disappointment.

"Oh now that sucks!" She said. Bucky nodded.

"I liked her." He sighed. Steve snorted and then went to find Toni.

He found her in the balcony room sitting on the couch by the fire pit, glass of scotch in hand. She had a smug smile and closed eyes. Steve sat down beside her, surprising her.

"Hey there sailor." She mumbled, setting her scotch down and swinging a leg over Steve's lap. Her hair tumbled around both their faces, shrouding one side from view. His hands went to her hips as she leaned down, pressing her lips against his. "Mmm, I'm sorry I get so overbearing." She mumbled in between kisses. Steve shook his head, their noses brushing back and forth a couple of times.

"Don't be, you're excited. I am too." He replied. Toni pushed herself back a little bit and ran a hand through Steve's hair, pushing it off to side. He looked at her, feeling himself relax into the sofa. "I love you." She grinned and kissed him once.

"I." She whispered, kissing him again. "Love." Another kiss. "You." One more. "Too."

STSTSTSTST

"Charlie Adenna, meet Steve Rogers." Toni said. Charlie suppressed a squeal, bending her knees in a fangirl manner. Steve smiled and shook her hand.

"It's nice to meet you Charlie, you're making my fiancé very happy." He said.

"Oh my God, Mr. Rogers this is such an honor and Ms. Stark this is just... Whoa!" She said. Toni smiled and slid her arm around Steve's waist.

"We have a limo waiting to take us to the tower. We have a room at the tower prepared for you and Steve is lending you the studio for your designing work." She told the girl. Charlie wanted to melt, feeling awesome as the limo driver grabbed her bag and put it in the trunk.

"I can't believe you picked me. Wow. My professor is freaking out right now." She said.

"Where do you go to school?" Steve asked as she fell in next to them.

"The Columbia College Chicago. It's got a pretty prestigious fashion program." Charlie answered. "Can I ask a huge favor? Can I take a selfie with you guys? My Tumblr followers don't all believe me." Toni and Steve looked at each other and shrugged.

"Sure." Toni answered. Charlie whipped out her phone and popped in between the two, snapping a quick photo.

"Thanks." She mumbled.

The ride was mainly in silence, most of it spent with Charlie staring out the window and listening to the quiet murmurs of Steve and Toni. Occasionally on the ride Toni or Steve would ask her a question but mainly she was too excited to answer properly.

The Avengers Tower was glorious. Filled with piss-your-pants worthy things to fangirl over. Charlie was blown away by the amount of things and yet the lack of things. And then she met the Avengers. Natasha Romanoff was surprisingly less frightening than Tumblr had said and her boytoy/assassin partner Hawkeye was awesome. He seemed to have a secret love for dogs and enjoyed messing around. Sam Wilson was kind and seemed to be the only one that struck her as wholly human. Banner, whom she didn't actually meet, was reclusive and avoided her. And then she met Thor. Steve Rogers was gorgeous. Clint Barton was hot. Sam Wilson was to die for. Thor was cut-a-bitch-to-get-to-that-man beautiful. He had an unearthly glow about him which only made sense because he was a God from another realm.

"The Lady Adenna, I've heard much about you." He said kissing her hand and bowing. She fought the urge to melt into a puddle.

"Charlie, come on we'll show you to the studio." Steve said. She followed Cap and Ironman up to the penthouse where one huge room awaited her. It was hardwood floors, all window and had a low ceiling. It was homey and filled with easels bearing sketches. There were sketches of models, a multitude of Toni, posed both clothed and unclothed. There were doodles of Toni working and Natasha and Bucky Barnes relaxing. There was one of Clint fiddling with Natasha's hair, one of Banner examining a slide in the light. The was a detailed sketch of Sam playing video games with Bucky. Charlie looked around in awe.

"Steve these are amazing sir." She said. Toni cackled.

"Just call him Steve, no need for formalities, he hates those." She said. Charlie nodded. "Now, what will you be needing?" Toni asked. Charlie chewed her lip.

"A couple of dress stands and a work table, a sewing machine and money for shopping." She said.

"Done, done, done and done. Jarvis, get her a card. Steve can you get a work table up here from my shop? In the meantime, I'll have Pepper show you around the tower." She said. Steve left in the elevator. "Jarvis, get Pepper up here please." Charlie made a choking sound.

"Holy crap, it's Jarvis. Oh my God that is so cool!" She said. Toni grinned.

"Ms. Potts is on her way up miss." Jarvis said.

"Jarvis, where are your manners. Say hello to Charlie or you'll hurt her feelings."

"Good afternoon Ms. Adenna, I hope your flight was well and that your time here will be enjoyable." Jarvis said, was it just Charlie or was that an oddly spiteful tone directed towards Toni?

"Damn that's cool. Yeah, my flight was awesome, thanks Jarvis." Charlie replied. Toni smiled.

"Well if you don't mind, I'm going to head down to my shop and do a little tinkering before we start into the dress designing. I'll leave you to the initial stuff and the tour and return when you need me. Just tell Jarvis to get me when you do." Toni said, turning to leave.

STSTSTSTST

"Ouch!" Nat snapped, Charlie practically leapt back.

"OhmyGodmissRomanoffareyouokay?I'msosorry!" She said, a slew of words that word vaguely incomprehensible. Nat sighed.

"You shouldn't finish my dress now." Nat mumbled. Charlie looked up, confused, from pinning the back together.

"What for? Ms. Hill's and Ms. Potts' are done, I just need to finish yours and the details of Ms. Stark's." Charlie told her, pin between her lips.

"Really Charlie, we're all on a first name basis here, just join in." Toni called over magazine.

"Between us Charlie." Nat murmured. "I'll be a little wider come her wedding." Charlie's mouth dropped open, letting the pin fall out.

"Are you saying-"

"Yes, Ms. Adenna. The important part is that right now Clint and you are the only two who know and I expect to keep it that way till later." Charlie closed her mouth and grabbed the pin. She continued on the empire dress with the heart-shaped top and little corner sleeves. Part of her was overly excited, another part was disappointed her dress's figure would not get shown off.

"My lips are sealed and my fingers locked." She replied. Nat flashed a quick smile as she redirected her gaze to the windows.

"Ah! Charlie! Look, People Magazine published the deets on my dress!" Toni cried. Charlie perked up.

"Oh yeah? Can you read it out loud?" She asked. Toni cleared her throat.

"'_The entire dress is white as snow, delicately patterned lace running from the top of the sweetheart neck to the long train. It hugs her curves at the waist and hips as it tapers into a delicate mermaid tail, the back swooping down in folds of lace that look like the tail of a peacock for the way it accentuates her legs and the whole length of her body. The back is almost entirely see-through, bordered by white flowers and slit in the middle to reveal a swath of skin from her neck to just below the small of her back, scandalous but for the fact that it's Toni Stark and the cut of the dress makes it impossible to see anything but the perfect, snowy bride. The skirt of the dress, starting just above her knees, is decorated with swaths of folded lace that end at intervals, building a layered trail that flows behind her like water. Between the folds of her sweetheart neckline is a single, tiny, glimmering jewel in the shape of Cap's emblem, and a silver pearl clasps the thin fabric of the dress's back at the bottom of her neck. It is the perfect blend of 40s blushing bride and Toni's desire to stand out. Classy, elegant, and stunning, it shouldn't be possible for a dress to be seductive and at once chaste, but with a Stark inside it that's almost a guarantee_.' Whoa, that's accurate." Charlie squealed slightly.

"Wow, Toni this is so cool!" She squeaked. Toni smiled and put down the tabloid.

"If we're on the subject of my dress. I have an idea for the veil." She said. Charlie looked up and over at her expectantly.

"Shoot."

"Well I don't want Steve to know till the wedding itself but I was kind of hoping to make the brooch not a brooch so much as a patch." She said. Charlie nodded while making one last pleat on the bodice. "Steve's old team, the Howling Commandos, had a patch. It was one single gold wing and I was hoping we could turn that into the pin. I have an original patch." She explained.

"How'd you get an original?" Nat asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Peggy Carter, I met her a couple weeks back and she gave me one that she'd gotten from one of Steve's destroyed jackets. I wanted the jacket too but it was trashed and I didn't want to take that away from her. She's a lovely woman, still a little weird because Steve and her... were a... thing? I guess. But she's really sweet. Very old too." She replied. Nat nodded.

"Okay done, you can slip that off and then Jarvis will you have Steve come up? I need to start the final touch-ups on his suit." Jarvis replied with a cordial yes. Toni was excited to see Steve in the suit, she liked a well fitted suit on him. She stood and walked over to the closet where they were storing her dress, checking to ensure Steve wouldn't see it. He couldn't see it till she walked down the aisle and surprised him with the 40s style. Her heart skipped a beat at the thought of his face upon seeing her dress.

The elevator opened to Steve who was rubbing his eyes and yawning. Toni turned, flashing him an unusually sweet smile, and strode over to him, resting an arm on his shoulder.

"Nap time for Stevesie?" He shrugged off the comment and leaned down and kissed the top of her head which made Charlie grin, she still wasn't used to seeing her OTP show affection- most of her OTPs were not canon.

"Mm, Toni," He said, like he was suddenly remembering something. "I talked to Peggy's daughter and she said she can swing something and get the suit." Toni's gaze shot to his face, locking eyes with him.

"Seriously?" Steve grinned.

"Seriously. And-" He was interrupted by Toni throwing her arms around his neck and pulling herself up into his arms, kissing him deeply. Nat rolled her eyes as she buttoned her jeans, Charlie just bit her lip hard. Steve laughed. "Mmm... Toni..." He mumbled against her lips, trying to detach. "Mmm, Toni really." Toni dropped back to the floor and ruffled Steve's hair.

"What?" She said, as if the kiss had not interrupted him and the pause was his fault. He looked a little frazzled.

"Yeah... right... the musician you wanted just called- or his manager did- he says that the guy can play." Toni bit her lip to prevent her smile from growing to big. Steve pulled her close and pecked her on the cheek. "Alright, apparently I've got a suit fitting to attend to or else Jarvis waking me up was completely useless." As Steve started away from her, she slapped his ass and made for the elevator. Steve had frozen, dumbstruck, and Nat and Charlie were suppressing fits of laughter. A smile played with Toni's lips at Steve's confused discomfort with the situation.

STSTSTSTST

**_Bucky Barnes Lives: Stark-Rogers Wedding Updates  
_**_by Marguerite Placard, NBC News (transcription of the night show)_

_Long thought to be killed in action in 1945, it turns out that James Buchannan Barnes, revealed to be the Winter Soldier after S.H.I.E.L.D. and HYDRA's files were released last year, is not as dead as the world has thought, not even for the second time when he went head-to-head with Captain America last July. As of this Friday evening it looks like Captain America's old friend is alive and well, if more than a little skittish around cameras. _

_Onlookers have been prevented from snapping pictures of preparations as they enter and leave Starsteps Dance Studio, booked by Toni Stark every Wednesday and Friday for the past two months. Thanks to the aggressive efforts of Natasha Romanoff, who seems to have gone Black Widow on any and all cameras in the vicinity, this has kept Barnes' status as not-deceased solidly in place. While Romanoff has been similarly protective of the bride-to-be, once even throwing a paparazzi out of bushes by Avengers Tower and threatening to break his camera hand when he tried to photograph a bed-head-ridden Ironman, her behavior around the mysterious stranger joining the Avengers in the studio has been exponentially more guarded. _

_ "__He looks kind of like a hobo," says one anonymous witness to the many comings and goings of the Tower. "Really long hair, stubble, dresses in black and leather jackets all the time. He's kind of cute, but he doesn't seem like the brightest crayon in the box from the way he's always lagging behind Captain and Black Widow." _

_When a cameraman managed to climb a tree to get a shot into the fitting studio where Charlie Adenna has been designing the outfits for the wedding party, however, all of the confusion was instantly cleared up. The picture of the man half-dressed in a tuxedo bared his upper body for all the world to see- including the red-star-bedecked metal arm, and a full shot of his face. The cameraman is currently in the hospital and pending a lawsuit against Black Widow for her "privacy enforcement" tactics, but he managed to download the picture before he fell._

_It was Bucky Barnes, looking worse for wear even in a nice tux, but most definitely alive. Luckily for the Avengers, Barnes was awarded a posthumous pardon for his actions as the Winter Soldier once Captain Rogers explained the details of HYDRA's attempted takeover, so the recuperating veteran/assassin has nothing to fear from the law; and every reason to run from the paparazzi. _

_In other news, Avengers Clint Barton and Natasha Romanoff, both former S.H.I.E.L.D. agents who now reside in Avengers Tower, were sighted leaving the Starsteps Dance School late this evening. Despite her background as a ballerina Romanoff seems to be adhering to Stark's schedule- only the hand-holding with teammate Barton surely wasn't a part of it. _

_As they exited paparazzi were able to snap a few pictures of the couple clasping hands as they entered a Stark Industries vehicle. Although with the recent events few will be accused of supporting these two erstwhile Avengers after their involvement with S.H.I.E.L.D., #clintasha was trending on twitter mere minutes after the first photos were uploaded. _

_For other members of the super wedding, things might not be as blissful as they are for lovebirds Barton and Romanoff, and Stark and Rogers. The lineup for the bridesmaids and groomsmen has yet to be announced, but fan theory says that Pepper Potts and Romanoff will most certainly be in the lineup, as will new Avenger Sam Wilson (aka The Falcon) and, as evidenced by the newest photos, Barton and Barnes. _

_More on the wedding as it unfolds, including an exposé on designers, venues, the wedding party, and, of course, all the details of the Stark-Rogers matrimony. _

"Holy shit! You're- he's... Holy shit! Oh my God I didn't even notice! Oh my God... I'll shut up now." Charlie squeaked, cupping a hand around her mouth.

"They... know now?" Bucky mumbled. Steve sighed and clapped a hand on his buddy's back.

"Don't worry Buck, we'll figure it out." He replied half-heartedly. "In the meantime... Toni, what do they mean by the Starsteps Dance Studio?" Toni's eyes widened and she slid behind Nat, pushing her forward.

"Clint and Natasha? Gasp!" She said in a tiny voice, huddling behind the ex-assassin. Nat turned red and thrust Clint in front of her.

"Explain away Barton!" She shouted and was suddenly slinking out of the living quarter. Clint shot Nat a dark look and then turned back to his fellow Avengers; Steve and Bucky leaning against the counter, Sam sitting on the counter top beside Steve, Pepper waiting excitedly in one of the barstool, Toni behind himself, an absent Banner (no doubt in the labs), and the honorary Avenger Charlie who was seated on the sofa.

"Nat's having a baby! Shit!" He shouted and raced past her for the elevator. Nat, paralyzed with rage and embarrassment, glared at Hawkeye as the elevator door slid shut. She mouthed 'I will end you' at him just before he left view.

"What?" Everyone save Charlie shouted in unison. Nat grit her teeth and spun around on her heel.

"Ta-da." She mumbled quietly, searching for a way out- the window, unfortunately, was out.

"Is it Clint's?" Steve asked. She did not reply.

"How far along are you? Will you have a baby bump for the wedding? I will eternally hate your baby if you do." Toni growled.

"Whoa, so Clint and her is a thing? Nat, seriously?" Sam questioned, mouth agape. "I definitely pegged you as the 'forever alone' type when I first met you." Nat closed her eyes and clenched her fists.

"Answers: Yes, one month, I don't know, you won't, yes, yes, no." She said and then went running for the stairs. Everyone took a moment to recover. Toni sighed.

"So, I nominate Steve to go talk to her." She said. Steve shot her a look which Toni returned.

"Yeah, yeah, Steve, you're our best bet." Sam agreed, pushing Steve's shoulder. "Go on Super Soldier, you're the one least likely to die." Steve thinned his lips and narrowed his eyes.

"You are all of you yellow-bellies." He grumbled.

"Steve, no on speaks 40s here." Toni said, still crouched on the floor but now leaning back against the sofa. "Tell him Charlie." Charlie looked confused.

"Cowards." Steve snapped and made for the elevator. Bucky watched with an emotionless face.

"Don't die Steve." He mumbled. Steve waved him off. Charlie pushed herself up a little.

"Hey so um, Mr. Barnes- God this is awesome- can I design a Winter Soldier line? I'll call it Winter Couture. It's gonna have lots of leather and metal jewelry. I see it already." She mumbled, slowly spreading her hands in the air in front of her. Bucky gave a look of half horror half confusion.

"Steve, wait for me." He said and eased out of the room, skirting Charlie with a wide berth.

STSTSTSTST

_**Media Battle for Stark-Rogers Wedding Continues (Hunger Games of Media- Stark Style)  
**__by Jason Saunder (of The New York Times)_

_On October 12th, the baristas at the Howling Commandos Coffee Shop were among the privileged few to view the proposal of the decade; that between superheroes Captain America and Ironman, who have been trailed for months about their mysterious relationship and avoided reporters and paparazzi at every turn. The news is out and the entertainment world is bursting at the seams to get the full story, but ever since Toni Stark herself instagrammed a picture of the ring- and nearly crashed the website- there has been little communication with the Avengers or their Public Relations team. _

_With one of the biggest weddings the celebrity world has ever seen finally under way, it's down to Stark and Captain Rogers to decide just how public the nuptials will be. Major media outlets have already made that decision for them, however, and the battle for the right to publicize and air the wedding has begun. _

_Vogue has been trying to get Stark and Rogers to agree to a spread since the Huffington Post broke the engagement story, but the new Avengers PR team, headed by former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Maria Hill, has been religious in their avoidance of the media. Entertainment Weekly also wants the rights to an exclusive spread and photoshoot, while Forbes has tried to contact Stark through Stark Industries CEO and long-time friend Pepper Potts, proposing a photo shoot featuring each of the possible wedding dresses designed by bridal contest winner Charlie Adenna. _

_Meanwhile, talk shows are fighting it out as well, as the Avengers' potentially busy-schedule- although there hasn't been a world crises in weeks now- limits their on-air time. The Colbert Report and the Daily Show are both still in the running, as are The Ellen Show and several other hot-button celebrity shows. CNN, Fox, MTV, and other major media outlets are also pleading the right to cover the wedding, although there has been no word from Stark or Rogers, who have been avoiding the media all week. _


	5. Stark-Rogers

**AN: Sorry it took SOOOOO long but school and editing and school and writing and school... blech... :P Anyways I hope you enjoy. I'm thinking two or three more chapters and then afterwards I'll be posting my special AU so check that out!**

Toni and Bucky stood inside the main room, staring out the Lighthouse window. It was afternoon and Toni already had her dress on. Bucky couldn't deny that she looked spectacular, her long, slim white dress and hair falling down on one side in waves. She had her hand clamped tight around a cup of chai. She looked over at him and then back at the ground.

"Thanks," She mumbled. "I realize that it ought to be Pepper out here with me but I dunno, I felt like should be you." Bucky flashed a small, reassuring smile. Something he'd only just started doing.

"I understand," He replied. Toni wondered if he really did. He was Steve's best friend and over time he'd grown to be one of hers. He knew the effects of PTSD. He knew fear and pain and being alone. He knew it all and they really did have moments together where they understood each other and could enjoy each other's company. "You ready?" He asked her quietly. She nodded.

"I've had almost an entire year to prepare for this. Yeah, I'm ready. How bout you? Are you ready to see your little punk all grown up?" She smiled at him, a loving and teasing smile. Bucky laughed slightly, it amazed Toni how much he'd grown in the past year. He was finally easing back into real life. He would never be the same Bucky that Steve had grown up with but at least he resembled him.

"If you're asking whether he's going to go AWOL then rest assured, he'll be there." She cracked a nervous grin.

"I love him. I know you've heard me say that before but you really have to understand that I love him." She watched his face, looking for a change in expressions. There was none, just that same resting-Bucky-face he always had.

"I know you do. I also know that Mr. Righteous loves you just as much." Toni took Bucky's hand, interlacing their fingers.

"I'm sorry about how we first met. If we're going to be perfectly honest right now, I'm glad we're friends, I know we can drive each other up the walls but you're always a good friend," She whispered. Bucky looked over at her. She was shorter than he was but just barely, maybe that was true right now because she had not yet donned her heeled shoes.

"You're not so bad yourself." He swung their hands back and forth gently, making Toni smile.

Outside of the Lighthouse it was raining, it was a cool rain that prickled skin and drew you out for that fresh rain smell. She was worried that if she left that spot she might fall over, conquered by nerves and surmounting feeling that she was going to mess something up. Bucky squeezed her hand slightly, noticing her face paling.

"Toni, you're gonna be fine. You said it yourself; you've had all year to prepare." He bolstered. She shook her head.

"I am ready, I'm ready to marry Steve but I'm afraid that I'll disappoint him or mess something up today." She replied. Bucky nodded, he understood perfectly. Toni stared down at her bouquet that she'd carried out with her for some reason; the Captain America emblem in flowers ringed with red and gold.

Then the door to the room opened and Pepper stepped out, flashing Toni a reassuring smile as the two looked back at her. Toni sighed, knowing that she was going to have go face the prospect of screwing up her wedding. Pepper tipped her head slightly towards the direction she'd come from, Toni's cue to follow her. Toni glanced up at Bucky.

"Go take care of Steve. Don't let him go all runaway groom on me," She muttered and kissed Bucky's cheek. Bucky flashed her a smile, it was a quick one and not completely sincere but it was a smile and Toni still appreciated it.

Pepper led Toni back to the room where they were getting ready. Inside Nat was having Charlie let her dress out just slightly, an almost unnoticeable weight change and Maria was checking her dress in the mirror. Pepper smiled at Toni and went to get her dress. Toni took a breath, feeling overwhelmed by her marriage. In a few hours she would no longer be free-wheeling, she would be Toni Stark-Rogers. Maria turned and cracked a sly smirk, she knew exactly what Toni was thinking, and Nat probably knew too.

"I do like this dress," Hill commented, running her hands over it. It was a high, straight necked red pleated bust dress and she'd paired with some red, shiny spool heels. Toni thought she looked very... Hill... like a vintage version of her professional self. Charlie, having finished the final adjustments of Nat's dress, was now styling the assassin's hair. She was a fast worker, pinning up the back and curling her vibrant red hair on top her head. Charlie glanced over at Toni, furrowing her brow.

"Toni?" She mumbled. Toni shook her head.

"I'm fine, really," Toni assured her.

"Are you sure?" Pepper asked from the corner were she was pinning her hair. Toni had insisted upon a stylists but Pepper had said no, asserting that they could manage it and make it look awesome. And Charlie had volunteered, saying that it would be an honor. Something told Toni, now, that Pepper had declined the stylist for Charlie's sake.

"I am, however, dying in here. I'm going to go back outside." Pepper raised an eyebrow.

"No bailing. And no letting Steve see the dress!" Toni nodded and left the room, falling against the wall as she tried to breathe. Extremis, Ten Rings, Loki, Vanko. She'd conquered so many demons but here, standing not fifteen feet away from her friends, she felt like they were back. Back and trying to engulf her, to drown her happiness. She took a breath._ Steve. Steven Grant Rogers, I do._

STSTSTSTST

"Come on Bucky," Steve urged. Bucky shook his head, fiddling with the sleeves of his suit.

"She's... fine but you _do not_ get to go see her. Not till the, uh, ceremony." Bucky gave him a look that read finality, Steve would not be talking his was past his friend.

"Why did you hesitate on fine? Is she going to bail?" Steve demanded. Bucky sighed, rolling his eyes, and shot Sam a look. Sam nodded and walked over to Steve, gently placing a hand on the super soldier's shoulder.

"Sit down Steve, you're going to drive yourself up the wall. Clint's keeping it together," Sam said, tipping his head in the direction of the sharpshooter. Hawkeye was sitting on the couch, phone in hand, he looked up. What the others were not seeing was the phone's screen, a series of messages to Nat. _Does the dress fit? Can a dress cut off circulation to a fetus? Are you eating enough? Should I bring you some food? Bucky's not letting Steve out of the room. Steve's freaking out. Are you freaking out? Is Toni freaking out? Is the baby freaking out? Should I be freaking out? Nat...? Are you there? Is the baby there?_

"Yep! Stay strong Steve!" He said, winking. Steve sighed and returned to the couch. He was desperately glad that Toni had picked a location with places to relax before the ceremony.

"Okay, okay. I'm okay." Bucky raised an eyebrow.

"She told me to tell you not to go runaway groom on her," he relayed. Steve smirked, picking up his cap and twirling it in his hands.

"I owe Peggy Carter so very much."

"You owe her daughter, good thing they're here tonight. Just ask them to dance," Sam replied.

"Yeah, yeah, okay. I'm ready. I'm ready," Steve breathed.

"Punk," Bucky mumbled, staring at a painting.

"Jerk."

STSTSTSTST

"I was raised Irish-Catholic, I'm from the forties and I'm not that creative. I went traditional on my vows and I have a feeling that I'll catch flack for that later. But I, Steven Rogers, take you, Toni Stark, to be my lawfully wedded Iron Wife, to have and to hold and to back up in battle from this day forward, for better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness, health or extremely scraped up, to love and to cherish from this day forward till death- or an alien wormhole- do us part," Steve said, brushing a strand of hair from the left side of Toni's face. Toni tried to suppress a loving smile. She cleared her throat.

"I've spent years fighting demons by filling my time with work or not sleeping. I'd never had a night where I didn't wake up screaming. Except for every night that you held me, every night since when I found you beating away your demons in the training room," Toni paused for a moment, Steve watching her with concentrated brows. "Truth be told when I first met you I hated you. Such as every cliché love story. I thought you were Mr. Goody-Two-Shoes and it... well it irked me. I'm over it- mostly- sometimes your patriotism is blinding." There was a chuckle throughout the room.

"I would like to say I haven't spent weeks practicing this speech or practicing walking down the aisle or practicing saying the words 'I do' but I have. The truth is I've spent weeks trying not to stumble with these heels that if it were normal circumstance I would stomp down the sidewalk in. I've spent at least a month trying to write a sentence of this thing and another month trying to recite said sentence. I'm saying this because it's important, because about an hour ago I tossed this part in. I'm saying this because I have a fear of disappointing you Steve Rogers. I've never given two cents about my reputation or the people it affected but now I do. More than ever, I can't disappoint you because it would rip apart my being.

"You, Steven. Grant. Rogers. keep my fears and worries and nightmares away. Be it by your star-spangled shield or your star-spangled attitude, I don't know nor do I care. All I care about is the fact that there is a time, right now and hopefully forever onward, that you love me. So yes, Steve, I take you to be my lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold- and that's a big part of it- from this day forward, for better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward till death do us part," And when she looked up from his hands there were tears clumping on his eyelashes.

"Do you, Steven Rogers, take Antonia Stark to be your lawfully wedded wife?" The Officiant asked, smiling kindly at Steve. There was an awkward pause as Steve stared at Toni and fear boiled up in side her. Then Bucky elbowed him.

"I do," Steve blurted suddenly, as if he was surfacing after almost drowning.

"And do you, Antonia Stark, take Steven Rogers to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

"I do. Ha! I got it out!" She cried. Steve grinned.

"You may now kiss-" The Officiant didn't finish because Toni had practically leapt into Steve's arms, surprising the super soldier. Cameras flashed, both media and not, and Toni would have bet that Pepper was leaning on Nat. She didn't want to let go of Steve, to slide out of his arms or pull her lips off his, but she did. She did because she knew that the coming week was going to be full of that and considerably more. So she eased out of his grip and smiled at him, an unapologetic, girlish smile. Steve leaned down and kissed her again, slower this time, with a finger under her chin and more cameras snapped photos. Behind them Nat mumbled, "Vogue has got to be eating this up."

STSTSTSTST

Steve had an arm around Toni's waist, cinching them tight together as the photographers and snapped photos of the newly weds. Then the bridesmaids and groomsmen joined the photo and then the remaining two Avengers and Sif. Then they all took a goofy photo; Steve carrying Toni bridal style while she stuck out her tongue, Thor had his arm around Sif and Mjolnir in his other hand, Banner looked confused, Sam and Pepper posed as if ballroom dancing, Nat had an arm draped on Clint's shoulder and a bored expression and Bucky just looked confused.

"Howling Commandos," Bucky mumbled. Steve looked over at him.

"What?"

"Her veil." Bucky pointed to the comb pin holding her veil on her head. Indeed it was the patch that Peggy had given Toni, a single gold wing with three tiers. Steve stared at Toni.

"Steve?" Toni mumbled. "Steve? Are you okay? I used it because I thoug-" She was interrupted by Steve's arms wrapping around her in a bear hug. He buried his face in her hair and neck.

"God I love you so much," he breathed. He eased her down. "The dress and the little jewel and the bouquet and now this. I love you so much Toni Stark." Toni smiled warmly and kissed his cheek.

"Speaking of loving me, why'd you pause at 'I do'?" She asked, crossing her arms.

"Because I admittedly did not know your full name was Antonia," he replied. She raised an eyebrow and then sighed, not bothering to pretend to be upset.

"Well if all that was a surprise, then you'll love the cake." She said. She grabbed him by the arm and hauled him over to the main room, now refurnished with the reception setup.

In the center of the room was a four-tier white and gold cake, with a branch of frosting flowers falling off the top. On each gold tier was a part of one of Steve's drawings. Steve stared at it for a minute and then turned back to Toni.

"I don't want to cut it," he breathed, giving her a puppy dog face. She laughed.

"Take a photo Steve, photos don't mold." Steve and Toni cut the cake and the reception went on, the musician- Ray LaMontagne, one of Toni's secret favorites- played the first dance song, _Hold You in My Arms_. And Toni danced, still in her dress, and let Steve, who had changed into his reception suit, guide her around the room. She didn't like showing vulnerability or letting people know how she needs them, but that night was hers. And because it was hers, she did another thing for Steve.

She'd been going to the Starsteps Dance Studio specifically so she could surprise Steve one more time. So when she had the band start playing the Charleston, Steve's face lit up.

"No," he breathed. She nodded. "Is that why-?"

"Oh yeah." He laughed and the pair started swinging with the music, then he picked her up and flipped her over his shoulder. The two were laughing; Toni feeling lost in the high of the moment and Steve wishing he could stop everything and kiss her. Instead they danced, danced to more songs- slow dance, fast, jazzy- and then they mingled, laughed with friends and ate. And as the night reached its end the two changed into civvies, had the Stark company car take them to airport where they boarded the company jet and prepared for the long flight to Paris.

Toni, after staying up a little longer to chat with her husband, leaned back and fell asleep in his lap. He, in turn, fell asleep with an arm draped lazily on her shoulder and his head tipped back against the bench back. The two slept like that until one of the attendants came back, lightly tapped them on the shoulder and said they'd be landing soon.

STSTSTSTST

"Okay, I promised I'd take you to the Pompidou and we got the rest of today so let's go!" Toni said, stepping onto the tarmac and spinning in her Prada flame sandals. Steve laughed, walked up to her, and caught her around the waist. She leaned back, letting his arm support her. "Do what you will with me, Superman," she teased, tossing the back of her hand onto her forehead and pretending to faint. He let the corner of his lips play with a smile.

"I'll do whatever you want to do." She looked up at him, a look of fondness on her face.

"Well that's good because we're going shopping. Tomorrow, the Pompidou! We have four weeks here buddy, we're going places. And we're not just staying in Paris," she said, patting his shoulder.

And so he let her drag him all around the city. The two went shopping in Sacre Coeur and saw the Montmartre, and took the metro to the Gardens of Luxembourg and then wandered over to the Musée de l'Oranjerie, an impressionist museum. And as night started to fall they took a Bateau Mouche ride and then scaled the Eifel Tower. They went to the very top and, because Toni wanted to post it on Tumblr with the tag #Pariscliché, they took a selfie of them kissing. And Toni pretended to be scared of the height so Steve would wrap his arms around her.

And then they took the metro back to their hotel which was near the Tower.

"I'm going to take a shower," he told her, and Toni briefly contemplated taking it with him. She shook the idea out of her head for something better.

When Steve got out of the shower, he got out to the sound of music.

_We could slow down  
Waste away in this town  
Standing on the sidewalk  
Watching this parade  
Or we could get out  
Pack our suitcase right now  
Find ourselves a bus stop,  
Make our own way_

"Toni?" He called, wandering around the penthouse suite. He wandered into the bedroom where Toni was lounging on the bed. She was not, in fact, wearing lingerie which surprised Steve. Instead she was in an overly large shirt, one of his.

"Kiss me?" She whispered.

_Cause it feels like I've been here forever  
Afraid to be my father, and afraid to leave him too  
But it's my name painted on the doorway  
Tells me where I came from and what I gotta do_

Toni pushed herself up and to the foot of the bed where Steve was standing. He smiled at her.

"I would die a thousand times for you," he murmured.

"I love you," she replied, and wrapped her arms around his waist. He leaned down and their lips touched.

"I love you too." The music washed over them, filling the space between them.

_Wherever this goes, no matter how far  
Baby, you are the song that's written on my heart  
Wherever we stand, wherever we fall  
It don't matter at all, cause I will be forever yours  
From this moment till the day the curtains close  
Wherever this goes_

And then she pulled him down as she fell back, bracing as his hands fell flat against the bed on each side of her head. She hooked the fingers of her left hand on the hem of the towel around him. Her right hand slid up the back of his neck and carded into his hair. A short gasp hitched in her throat when he eased himself closer, lowering to his elbows. It was something she loved about him, the caution that everything he did came with. He was always careful and deliberate when they kiss, and if it was fervent and fierce then it was always Toni leading. But this was slow on both parts.

_So we're here now  
Finally found our way out  
On the road to some place,  
Some place that we don't know  
But it's alright,  
Keep on driving all night  
Straight on through to till morning,  
I don't know which way to go_

_Cause it feels like we've been here forever_  
_I don't know how much farther or where we're going to_  
_But it's our name painted on the doorway_  
_Tells us where we came from and what we gotta do_

Toni wanted to pull Steve's Avenger sweatshirt- that Pepper had had made for the team- off to reveal the simple black cotton bra and plain underwear but she didn't. She didn't because she wanted Steve to. She wanted to feel his hands gently pushing the pull-over up and off her body. She softly pushed his shoulder, letting him take the cue to roll over which he did.

She gently swung a leg over him, her hair falling around on her left side and shelter them from that perspective. She eased her lips onto his and ran her hands across his chest as his slid gently around her hips. Then he did slide his hands under the sweatshirt and was pulling it off her and then fumbling with her bra clasp. He was interrupted by her voice.

"Never leave me," she breathed. He nodded as she ran her lips down his neck.

"Alright." And then the night surrounded them, and even though they'd been up for much longer than normal due to time change, the two were not tired. And whenever her fingers ran through his hair he felt even more awake. Whenever she mumbled something into the night he felt like he could have run across France right then and there. But whenever her lips let pass his name he just wanted to hold her all night. She was what kept him sane and her needing him just as much or more made him thankful for everything previous to her- and for everything after he would've moved heaven and raised hell to protect.

_Wherever this goes, no matter how far  
Baby, you are the song that's written on my heart  
Wherever we stand, wherever we fall  
Don't matter at all, cause I will be forever yours  
From this moment till the day the curtains close  
Don't matter at all, cause I will be forever yours_

_Wherever this goes, no matter how far,  
Baby you are the song that's written on my heart  
Wherever we stand, wherever we fall  
Don't matter at all, cause I will be forever yours  
From this moment till the day the curtains close  
Don't matter at all, cause I will be forever yours  
Wherever this goes  
__Wherever this goes  
__Wherever this goes_

STSTSTSTST

Toni reiterated, a lot, that she didn't understand art while they walked around the Pompidou. When Steve walked into the room displaying a set that looked like a _really _trashed sweatshop, Toni shook her head and threw a hand out at the piece.

"Seriously Steve, what the fuck is this?" She mumbled to him, ensuring that no one could hear them. Steve shook his head.

"It's modern art Toni, it's supposed to represent stuff, not display as obviously as something like impressionist," he replied. Toni huffed, returning her arms to crossed.

"So this represents what? The futility of workers cleaning up after themselves?" Steve bit his lip.

"Do you want to go somewhere else? If you're not enjoying yourself we can leave, I am interested in seeing the Louvre." Toni shook her head and pushed his shoulder.

"Sorry big boy, I'll shut up, just keep walking." Steve took one last look at the display and then the two left the side room, entering the hall displaying a line of enlarging spheres. Toni's upper lip twitched but she bit her tongue.

They continued walking through the museum, working their way up to the top floor where all their paintings were. One of the rooms in particular, though, caught Steve. The walls were plastered with newspapers, propaganda poster and various other forms of media from the Second World War. Toni saw his eyes glaze over as he stared at one poster in particular; _Captain America: Every Bond You Buy is a Bullet in the Barrel of Your Best Guy's Gun!_ Toni walked over, trying not look overly hurried, and looped her arm around his. He blinked a couple times rapidly and then looked down at Toni.

"Sorry, just a memory," he mumbled. Toni gave him a look.

"Come on, I saw a painting of a cow I wanna go see." Steve glanced back at the propaganda and then nodded.

"Yeah, let's go." Toni had seen what he'd glanced at though, and it hurt her heart when she caught it. _Sergeant Bucky Barnes: Lost in Action, Captain America mourns._

Toni stared at the cow for a while before deciding that, while it did have a nice moustache, she would not purchase it for the Avengers Tower. She did find, however, a lovely painting of a- was it Picaw something Steve had called it?- style Ironman bridal style flying Captain America through the New York City skyline. Steve was not amused, apparently the fact that "my face looks like one of my squealing fans, I don't look like that," upset him. Toni made a mental note to buy the painting and hang it above their bed.

The Pompidou closed its doors at a reasonable nine in the evening, Toni and Steve were respectfully approached by one of the docents.

"Monsieur et Madame Rogers, le musée ferme mais si vous plait, nous sommes OK avec rester avec vous pour un temps plus." Toni, brushing off what her old tutor had taught her, mumbled a reply.

"Non merci, nous partons maintenaient, mais nous avons eu un bon temps." The docent smiled kindly, nodded and scurried away. Steve shot Toni a sly smile to which gave him a look.

"What?" She asked, forcing back a grin.

"Nothing, I just didn't know you spoke French," Steve replied. Toni tapped the side of her nose and grinned at Steve.

"You're on a need to know basis Rogers." He smiled, draped his arm around her shoulders and kissed the side of her head.

"Well if that's how it's gonna be..." he mumbled. Toni looked up, narrowing her eyes.

"What does that mean?"

"I don't know, I just thought last night was really quite fun. I really wouldn't want that to disappear because I couldn't clear my schedule. I have heard that a need-to-know basis does have its drawbacks." A devious smile tugged at his lips. Toni pushed herself off him and hit his shoulder weakly.

"Oh Rogers, oh no! You just dug yourself in deep. You may have dug some deep-ass foxholes back in the war but I can guarantee you this one is the deepest!" She shouted, laughter mingling with her cry. Steve smiled.

"I am a super soldier, they are prone to dig deep holes," he retorted. She slipped back under his arms. She had to admit; hearing sarcasm and humor on his voice wasn't common- not light humor at least- and she enjoyed the sound of it.

"Take me to the Arc de Triumph, Mr. Super Soldier, I want to go to the top." Steve curled a strand of her hair around his finger.

"Bridal style or piggy back?" Toni cracked a smirk.

"I'm sorry, I thought I was the one who carried _you _bridal style," Toni quipped back with. Steve narrowed his eyes and gave her a look.

"You are so asking for it," he mumbled.

"For what, Captain Rogers? Oh dear me, I do declare!" She teased, pretending to faint and feigning a southern accent. Steve laughed. There were many threats the two could have idly made- Steve could've threatened to withhold sex (which he wouldn't do, as one day with Toni sauntering around in skimpy underwear would've broken him), Toni could've deprived him of date night or seeing her in dresses or perhaps even withheld coming out of her shop- but there was one threat neither would joke about. Neither Steve nor Toni would've joked about sleeping apart from each other, one night without the other's arms and nightmares would've flooded in. So instead Steve bit his lip.

"Well you won't be getting cheesecake for breakfast that's for sure," he retorted, turning his nose towards the sky.

"Uh huh, and what makes you so sure of that?"

"So many things. One, I can do without sleep and will therefore ensure cheesecake does not enter our room and two, every baker girl in the city of Paris would swoon if I bat my eyelashes, one shot of me asking politely for them to starve Toni Stark of cheesecake should do it." Toni laughed triumphantly.

"I'm a _trillionaire_ Steve, any eyelash-batting you do can be reversed by what is ten dollars to me. Nice try honey-buns," she replied. Steve pouted slightly. "Now, get Bucky out there with his red star and leather and trust me, they'll close up for good." Steve sighed and glanced at her from the corner of his eyes. Toni read the disappointment in his body language. "Sorry babe, I didn't mean that." He shook his head and cinched her closer.

"It's fine." But there mood was gone, dropped now, and Toni felt guilt sit its fat ass down on her heart

STSTSTSTST

Sunlight streamed into the window of the small cottage inn. Toni's quiet snores and Steve's arm around her gave an aura of serenity. The peace held for another hour before the light tapping of the breeze blowing a tree branch against their window woke Toni. She woke slowly, taking time to open her eyes and push herself forward.

She had discovered that while Paris was fun and seeing Steve's face light up at the Louvre or the Musée d'Orsay, Normandy have proved to be her favorite place yet. And even Steve, who had trained as a reinforcement and had campaigned across northwestern France, Austria, Germany and Belgium, enjoyed Northern France. They found it oddly peaceful, suiting seeing as it had been bombarded with a military show of force never before seen.

Toni groggily pushed Steve's shoulder and leaned down to grab her tank top, pulling it over her bra. Steve opened his eyes tiredly and mumbled something inaudible before yawning. Toni sighed, realizing that tomorrow they'd be heading back to Paris to catch an afternoon flight home- with a stop in Iceland of course. She blinked a coupled of times, slowly, and sudden shock settled into her head. She leapt out of bed and ran to the bathroom.

"Toni?" Steve called. There was no reply.

A few minutes late she was grabbing pants and her purse, calling, "I'll be back in a minute. I just have to run into town."

Steve sat, confused, on the bed for ten minutes till she returned, toting a look of fear on her face. Steve suddenly kicked into action. He leapt out of bed and rushed to her.

"Toni? What's wrong?" She shook her head and stared at him with wide eyes. He slid a hand onto her cheek and stared back.

"Nothing, I just needed to run into town for a minute, it's fine. Want breakfast?" Steve breathed a sigh of relief. She tossed him a shirt from their suitcases and flashed him a grin, it was weak though and made his mind kick into high gear.

The two went out in search of breakfast, which was not hard to find in the small seaside town of Luc sur Mer. On the walk into town, Steve regaled her with some more war stories, ones that didn't bring him down. A while ago, he'd said he never participated in D-Day, that was before his treatment- but Toni already knew all that from her father. She'd heard all the stories her dad had. Market Garden, Pegasus, Bastogne, and following the 506th Easy Company paratroopers up to the Eagle's Nest, Steve had taken part in all of it.

Her favorite story that her dad had always told her was when Steve got up with the Howling Commandos about an hour and a half after Easy Company had taken the Eagle's Nest. When they'd gotten there it was obvious the 506th had ransacked the place and had found the liquor. Bucky, Falsworth and Jim were stark raving mad that none of the paratroopers had saved any of liquor.

"Fucking serious?" Bucky had cried at a member of E Company.

"Your boy Rogers gets to say he's busted Hitler's jaw and we get to saw we drank all of that fucker's alcohol," a particularly feisty trooper had replied. Bucky just sneered but the little guy just trudged off to his buddies.

"Fuck them," Bucky had spat. Then Jones had come in the main room, three bottles in hand.

"Look what I found under old Adolph's bed!" He cried. Falsworth, Morita and Bucky had all replied by cheering and swarming Gabe for the booze.

"How'd you get 'em actually?" Falsworth had asked, popping the cork out of a bottle and taking a swig.

"How do you think? Those D Company boys were fighting each other once I said I'd trade some packs of cigarettes, a couple bars of chocolate and a mars bar."

"Toni?" Steve asked, rocking her back.

"What was Market Garden like?" She mumbled. He looked slightly taken aback, but steeled himself to tell her. She'd always wanted to hear the story from Steve directly but never wanted to ask till now. Steve pursed his lips.

"Well the people of Eindhoven had gotten their hands on some of my wartime propaganda and after the 101st airbornes got through there. They were so excited once Captain America came through. And then of course Bucky ended up in town that night. Plenty of Dutch girls for him to pick from and damn they were all over him. I swear, we walked through there and at least twenty girls got some of Bucky's lips." He had started laughing.

"And you?"

"Eh, only a few girls were interested but I left early on, didn't like the fuss. Ended up camping out with third platoon of E company, 506th. Good boys those were." Toni wrapped her arm around his waist, Steve noticed it was a hesitant, jerky movement and suspicion flared inside him.

STSTSTSTST

Steve had his arm draped around Toni's shoulders as she leaned against him. Outside the car, fields of green filled with cattle and draft horses passed by. Toni fumbled forward and gripped Steve's hand, glancing up to ensure the barrier between them and the driver was up. He looked down at her, brushing back her hair and breathing her smell in; pomegranates and grease- even when she hadn't touched machinery since before the wedding.

"Can I ask for the real reason why you went into town this morning?" He murmured. She glanced up at him, panic coursing through her veins. She opened her mouth to speak and then closed it. "Toni?" He squeezed her hand and she took a moment.

"I, uh... I realized I was late- my period." Steve's heart skipped a beat. "I went out to get a preg-" her voice caught and she closed her mouth, pushing away from Steve.

"You're pregnant aren't you?"

"It had to have been one of the first few nights... we got careless I guess," she sighed. Steve shook his head.

"Toni this is amazing, don't tell me you're not excited." Toni gave him a look like he was crazy and then redirected her gaze out the window. "You're not excited are you? Toni..." She looked back at him, anger sparking up on her features.

"Of course I'm not excited! This is something I've been terrified of my whole life! I don't want kids because I'm not a mother and we've already talked about that. I'm just me and we both know that I can't raise kids. I don't want to be a mother, Steve."

"Well then what do you want to do because it's happening, you're gonna be a mother, Toni," He replied. Toni narrowed her eyes.

"I'm not 'going' be a mother. I _can_ get an abortion."

"What?! No!" He cried.

"You can't tell me what I can and can't do Steve! It's my body and if I don't want a... a parasite growing in it then I won't have a parasite growing in it," she shouted back. Steve glared at her. "It's over Steve, just drop it please. I don't want to talk about it anymore."

The drive was spent in silence and upon arriving at the airport they were escorted to their plane with limited conversation. They boarded and Toni sat down on the bench, lying back and staring at the cabin ceiling. The plane took off and was in the air for half an hour before Steve finally went and sat by her head.

"You're right. It is your body but I am the father- or so I hope. I won't pressure you but I will ask you to consider starting a family. Just think about it," he whispered, brushing her hair back. Tears welled up in her eyes.

"It's scary," she muttered. "The idea of being a mother scares me, Steve. I don't know if I can do it." He sighed and looked up too.

"That's why I'm only asking you to consider it."


End file.
